The Borders of Chaos
by ServantOfRagnos
Summary: A Continuation, or Second Book, of the Son of Chaos series, also written by me! Tartarus has risen, and a war between the Gods and Monsters has broken out. While an Army gathers in Europe, the likes of which the world has never seen, the old enemy of the Greeks, the Persians, have marched out of their centuries-old hiding place. Can Sophia and Daniel lead their friends to victory?
1. Introduction

**"For Fuck's Sake!"**

"Daniel, calm dow-" Chiron's sentence was interrupted by the smash of a vase. I looked over and saw Daniel's sword sitting in a pile of vase shards.

Chiron looked at the vase for a few seconds before continuing.

"As I was about to say, not all is lost. We found some blood in the Cabin, as well as some cloth." Chiron continued calmly, "Also, I do not appreciate you smashing my Vase, thank you very much."

Daniel seemed to Grab hold of himself and looked at the Vase with embarrassment.

"Sorry." He muttered.

"It's fine."

"NO! Nothing is fine. My nectar hasn't cooled yet." Dionysus said, walking back into the room.

"Really?" Daniel asked sarcastically, "How bad!"

"I'm Sorry? You dare speak to me in that tone again, and I will turn you into a porpoise." Dionysus said, his voice getting an icy chill in it.

Daniel only seemed to get angrier at that.

"We've entered a war, where the GODS are at risk of defeat, yet it is we who fight in it. Tell me, where were you with your Godly Powers when Rome was in flames? Threats are all you can do."

A purple fire ignited in Dionysus's eyes.

"Ragnos shouldn't have had Children or Followers. I have no idea what Zeus had in mind when he decided to spare your useless life."

"Useless, am I?" Daniel asked, laughing. "I haven't seen you fight against Tartarus yet."

Mr. D's hands ignited with the same purple flame. With a crack, Grapevines emerged from the wooden floorboards.

"Let's calm down, Please Daniel, Mr. D." Chiron tried, his voice no more than a whisper, but he knew nothing was going to work at this point.

Suddenly, Daniel's eyes turned black, and the Grapevines turned to dust.

All power seemed to fail Dionysus, and his eyes widened.

With a pop, Dionysus Disappeared, leaving behind the Sour smell of wine.

"Coward." Daniel spat, his eyes returning back to normal.

Chiron's face was pale, and I was also unsure of what had happened.

"That was- Let's not do that again," I said.

"Daniel, making a God your enemy when were in times like these isn't wise. I've never seen Mr. D do this before though." Chiron muttered.

"I've-"

"No. Don't try and explain what you did. It won't help. I know that this Quest has taken a toll from both of you, maybe more for Daniel then you, Sophia."

I looked at Daniel. His head was drooping, and his eyes had bags under them that I hadn't seen before.

Chiron continued talking.

"You need some time off. Jenny has been gone for a week now. I know that both of you would happily run after her this instant, but getting both of you killed to save her wouldn't help anyone. I think a day off won't hurt either of you, so if you agree with me, I think you two should go down to Montauk for a bit."

Daniel said nothing, and I grabbed his hand in both of mine.

He smiled at that and squeezed my hands with his.

"I think that might be a good idea," I told Chiron.

"I'm happy to hear it, my child. Get some sleep. Both of you need it."

I looked at Chiron, who had noticed me holding Daniel's hand. He smiled but said nothing.

"I'm sorry... About messing with Dionysus. If he returns, tell him I didn't mean anything by it. Some sleep will help me." Daniel said.

"Some talking with him, and he'll understand." Chiron smiled.

I walked towards the door, pulling Daniel with me, who was looking sheepishly at the broken vase. He quickly reached for his sword, which flew back into his hands, where he sheathed it.

Once outside, We walked side by side towards the Cabins.

"It'll be nice to relax a little, won't it Soph?" Daniel asked.

"Yep," I squeezed his hand.

Daniel smiled at me, before his expression drooped.

"I really lost it in there, didn't I?"

"Yeah, but nothing too bad happened. At least you aren't a Dolphin. It would be hard to date you that way."

Daniel Laughed, some of his tiredness evaporating.

We arrived at his Cabin first, where he kissed me on the cheek.

"See you tomorrow. And please sleep. You need it." I told him.

"Yeah. Fine." He said, before turning around and walking into his cabin.

I did the same, walking back to my Cabin, and taking a long, hot shower. After walking out of the showers fully dressed, I tried to ignore Jenny's bed, surrounded by yellow curtains.

"Different time," I muttered, continuing towards my bed.

My bed was far more comfortable than the bunks back in the Fortress, that was for sure.

In no time, I was snoring.

 ** _Daniel_**

I closed the door behind me.

"Welcome back, my Son."

The Voice made me jump. My Father sat there, on my bed. He looked like a human, but the dark robes on him were still the same.

"You did well." He told me.

"Thanks, I guess."

He stood up.

"My time here is short. I wanted to warn you. What you experienced in the battle was the side-effect of using the energy of Chaos. Untrained, your body can't handle too much. What you did was heroic, but it nearly killed you. Very soon, you'll meet someone. He'll teach and train you how to use your powers properly."

"But I already know how to use Chaos," I told him.

"You've grasped the basics of it. But it's only the surface. You do not realize what power you contain. Never before has there been a demigod as powerful as you. Such power can corrupt anyone if given to them all at once. In due time, you'll be able to fully master everything you need. You'll need it too."

"So I'll have to fight him." I frowned.

"Do not underestimate him. He might not be in his home territory, but his strength is still vast. Every monster responds to him. After Gaia, it was he I created. I regret it now, but I must not interfere with fate. Your _Brother_ isn't invincible here, and he knows that. He'll use every enemy the Gods have to defeat them. It won't be easy."

"Thanks," I muttered.

His pupils went up into his head for a split second.

"I must go now, Sleep well." He said suddenly, dispersing into Chaos Tendrils and warping through the ornamental mirror on my desk.

Amazing, one more reason I wouldn't be able to sleep.

Over the Few days I had spent in this cabin, I explored little of it. There was a stairway leading down to a basement my father hadn't allowed me to go down into while I was here.

Since I wouldn't be able to sleep anyway, I walked down the steps.

A Massive, Gold and Chaos Metal Gateway stood there, but nothing was through it, just stone.

It wasn't too interesting and disappointed that my adventure had ended so soon, I returned back upstairs.

Taking a shower before laying down to sleep felt nice. Very soon, my eyes closed, quicker than I would have thought.

 ** _The Next Day_**

The Alarm Clock woke me up, which was still set to seven in the morning.

"Argh. Gods of Olympus." I groaned, slamming my hand onto the clock.

I was awake now, and there was nothing I could do about it. Once I was awake, I wouldn't fall asleep again.

Slowly getting up, I got dressed, putting on a Camp Half-Blood Shirt and Jeans for a change.

I then walked outside, most people were already awake and moving around.

"Good Morning!" Robert said, walking past me, not really looking up from the clipboard he was carrying.

"Good morning," I replied.

He stopped while walking away, and turned back around, seeming to forget something.

"The stuff those people brought with them is amazing." He told me while tapping the clipboard. "Who were they again?"

"Assassins of Chaos."

"Yeah, those dudes."

"That's good to hear. You have any idea on how to set them up?"

"Kind of, but I need the Bunkers so that I can take them apart and build more of them. We know where most of them are, but they are closed, and nothing can open them."

"Oh. Can't you just explode the door?"

"We could, but it's filled with many tons of Imperial Gold, as Leo Valdez wrote in his last letters. It'd send everything within a hundred-kilometer radius up into the air."

"That's not a good idea then."

"Yep. We're still not too sure where to set them up, but I'll find a place."

"What did you guys get by the way?"

"Twenty Scorpion Ballistae, though they are slightly different compared to what the Romans had. We also got dozens Celestial Bronze Spears, Swords, Shields, knives and Armor."

"Nice."

"Yeah, they really came in useful. Other than that, there's nothing else of significance. Some Celestial Bronze Plates for Forging, and some Building supplies."

"Do you need help with anything?"

"I think we could use some help with the ballistae since the Bolts use the same metal for the Tips that your swords and stuff are made out of. But that can wait a month or two."

"Just be sure to find me if you need any help. I'll happily do so."

Robert Nodded.

"Bye." He told me, then walked off.

I sighed deeply, taking in the fresh morning air, before walking off to the Dining Pavilion. I took a plate of Sausages and sat down. The smell of it was amazing, and only then did I realize that I hadn't eaten anything ever since I had woken up in bed on Chaos Isle.

Halfway through my meal, someone walked up behind me and kissed me on the cheek.

"Hey," Sophia said.

"How come you're up so early?"

"I could ask the same from you." She laughed.

"True."

She sat down beside me with a plate of pancakes. Every time she ate breakfast, it seemed she chose pancakes.

"I love pancakes." She muttered, stuffing her face with them.

"I can see that." I smiled.

"You have anyone you want to bring with you?" Sophia asked.

"Not really. Don't know a lot of people around here. But anyone that's your friend, is also mine I guess."

"I'll probably bring a few people with me."

"Like?"

"John, Desdemona, maybe Malcolm if he wants to. Robert... Umm, I could ask Bruce, Liz. A few others might also come to mind, but I doubt they have time."

"Sounds good."

"A bit of relaxation will help us, that's for sure."

"Yeah, but won't the Beach be too dangerous, now that, you know, our Enemies control it?"

"I doubt it. The Forces of the Ocean are probably regaining some strength before they do anything."

"I hope you're right."

"Yeah. Me too." She muttered.

I decided to steer the conversation in a different direction.

"Did you find your hat?"

"What?"

"The Hat you wanted to bring along to the Quest, but you forgot it. It makes you invisible."

"Oh. No. I don't know where it's gotten to, but I haven't had the time to look for it yet."

"Well, I hope you find it," I said. We ate in silence for a few minutes, before John came walking up to us, holding some porridge.

"Hey, Guys!" He said, sitting down next to me.

"Hi. How are you?" I asked.

"Pretty good. Frankly, I'm happy I didn't go on the quest. Sounds like you had your work cut out for both of you. Then again, a Medic would have come in useful in Camp Jupiter."

"Yeah..." Sophia muttered, "Hey John, you wanna come with us?"

"On a quest? I'd rather-"

"No, just to the beach. Chiron's let us off for today. He said we can take some friends with us, so if you have nothing better to do, then you can come with us."

"To be honest, that'd be great. It'd be good to take some time off from the Aphrodite Cabin's Archery Lessons. It's a surprise that they've not pierced anyone yet." He said. I stayed quiet, remembering the first time I tried it.

"And Susan?" Sophia asked.

"She's... Probably one of the better ones." He blushed.

"No Bias?"

"Maybe a bit."

Sophia smiled.

"And Daniel, what's it like?"

I looked at him, confused.

"What's what like?"

"Being a Demigod."

"Oh. It's-" I paused, trying to find the right words.

"Hectic? Dangerous?" John Supplied.

"Yeah..." I trailed off, looking at Sophia.

"Doesn't seem like you've become more talkative in this month and a half," John Grunted.

"I'm just tired. Give me a few days, and I'll be back to normal." I smiled. "Listen, Soph. Gonna go back to my Cabin, I still have some packing up to do from when we left. We'll meet in a few hours."

She frowned a bit.

I kissed her on the cheek, and she hugged me back.

"Is everything okay?" She asked.

"Yeah," I said, my memory flashing the discussion I had with Harold before I left Chaos Isle. I wondered how long until I was needed again.

She didn't seem to believe me, but she didn't ask any more questions.

I shook John's hand, and then I was walking back towards the Cabin, my hand brushing against the Phone in my pocket.

 _ **Sophia**_

 ** _Two hours later._**

"We ready?" I asked, silencing the discussions between my friends.

"YES!" They shouted back. After an entire morning of searching, I had finally collected a few people. Bruce didn't want to come, saying he had better things to do, and neither did Malcolm and Elizabeth. We still had quite a group. John, Desdemona, Tony, Susan, Robert, Daniel and me. Argus was coming along too, as our Chauffeur.

I turned around and started walking down the far side of Half-Blood hill. At the bottom, Argus waited with a Delphoi Strawberry Service Van. Normally, these vans were used to transport strawberries to New York, giving the Camp a steady supply of Mortal Cash. Strawberries were always in high demand.

Soon enough, we were on the road to Montauk.

Chiron hardly allowed Campers to leave the Camp for things like this. But once or twice, we're able to convince him. The few times I've been to Montauk had been amazing, and I always looked forward to going there again.

The Mini-Van was comfortable to ride in, as it was built to carry many crates of strawberries or twenty demigods, whichever was needed.

Not ten minutes later, and we were there.

Argus parked the Van, and we quickly got off, hauling our stuff with us. The beach was mostly empty, a few other mortals were also enjoying the sun, but they didn't really care about a group of teenagers. The Mist helped cover anything strange, for instance, a hundred-eyed Giant.

After laying down a few blankets, everyone dropped their bags, before taking out their swimming stuff. Me, Desdemona and Susan went into the Girl's Changing room, while the boys went into their own. In no time, we were back outside, enjoying the summer sun on our skin.

Once returning in Bikini's and Swimming trunks respectively, we were ready to go into the water.

Daniel threw his stuff onto his bag, and something glinted inside his trouser leg.

"You brought... A knife?" I asked, taking a closer look.

He smiled apologetically.

"Yeah, it pays to be cautious."

"True. Still, it kinda kills the mood."

"Sorry."

"Sophia, Daniel. You guys coming or what?" John shouted.

The Others were already halfway to the waves of the Atlantic.

"Yeah, in a bit," I replied, squeezing Sunscreen onto my arms and chest.

John nodded, before turning around, and catching up with the others.

"Are you ready?" Daniel asked after a minute.

"I have to let this stuff dry, otherwise sleeping will be a pain."

"No." He Sighed. "To Relax. You're still thinking about Nico and Jenny."

"How-"

"I might not be good at many things, but I can see when something is bothering others. Am I right?"

"Okay, Fine. I am thinking about them."

"You have to forget about them for a bit. We'll help them as soon as possible, but we need some time to relax. In the past month and a half we've been through not one, but multiple battles. Not just against monsters, but against other people too. That can stress out everyone."

"You're right." I trailed off.

"Come. The sea will help you forget a bit."

He grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the Ocean.

When we reached the waves, Daniel stopped, letting go of my hand, and jumped about half a meter inwards. He disappeared under the waves, which surprised me, as the water could only have been waist-deep for him, no more. A few seconds later his head broke the surface.

"Holy Sh-Shit. It-It's colder th-than I expected." He shuddered.

I laughed.

"Also, Ma-Massive hole. So-Someone had fu-fun with digging this." He rubbed his arms and moved slightly to the right, where he managed to remain above the water without paddling.

"I'm not going in if it's that cold," I said.

"Oh yes you are," And he stood up, goosebumps clearly visible all over his body.

Before I even realized what he was planning on doing, he had swept me off my feet, holding me in his hands like a Damsel in distress. The water on his arm and chest was incredibly cold.

"Wait. No! Daniel James Greenfield if you-"

He waded in the water with me, not caring about my indignant tone. I started cursing in Greek, but even that didn't stop him.

The water overlapped me, and it was colder than I had thought.

Daniel let me go, and I immediately kicked to the surface. My hair flopped over my face, making it impossible for me to see anything. I swiped it away, and Daniel was trying very hard not to laugh.

"G-Gods of O-Olympus. It's really c-cold." I chattered.

"You get used to it quickly."

"As-As for you, Mister Chaos, I-I'll have my revenge," I smirked, also rubbing my arms.

"Is that my new nickname then?"

"Maybe." I smiled.

I waded closer to him, before tackling him, taking him by surprise.

"Wha-" I kissed him, effectively shutting him up. His lips had a salty tinge to it from the Seawater.

It felt nice to have someone that I could be this close to for a change.

The Kiss probably only lasted for a few seconds, but we pulled apart after what seemed like an eternity.

Daniel was still smiling.

"If this is your idea for revenge, I'm up for it." He said.

"Nope. It's not."

"Oh." He frowned, "Should I be afraid then?"

"Maybe," I said again, before swimming further out towards the Open Ocean. The Water was now up to my neck, but Daniel was right. It was much better after a while.

"Ah, I might have lied though. This water isn't getting much better. One big thing I hate is cold water." Daniel Moaned, shivering.

"Oh, poor you," I said sarcastically.

"Yeah, haha. Very Funny. Anyway, I'll probably just go and sunbathe a bit. I'm as pale as a corpse."

"That much is true. We've just arrived though, and you're already getting out of the water to sunbathe?" I asked, a bit angry at him.

"Sorry Soph, I'll get back in, in an hour or so."

I Flicked some water towards him.

He splashed me so hard, that I got knocked back far enough for my feet to not reach the bottom anymore.

"Fine," I muttered, spitting out water.

"If you want, you can come too." He smiled.

"Nah, I'll just go hang with the others."

"Cool." He said, kissing me on the cheek once I had swum closer, before wading out of the cold water.

I turned around and swam over to the Gang, who were standing in a circle. I couldn't see what they were doing.

"Hey, Sophia," John said once I got close enough.

"Hello."

"Where's Daniel?"

"Gone Sunbathing."

"Oh. That sucks. You wanna join?"

"Join what?"

"We're playing a bit of Truth or Dare."

"I've never played."

"Really?"

It was embarrassing but true. At camp, I was way too busy to sit down to play games. Especially with the Aphrodite Cabin, whose specialty was to play games like this. The one game I enjoyed was Volleyball.

"Yeah."

"Well, in that case, we'll teach you," John said.

"Sure."

"Join the circle," Desdemona told me.

I swam into an empty space.

"Right now, we've resized the game so it's more interesting to play in the water. We're using a ball to choose who we're going to ask from. The person who has the ball has to turn his or her back, before throwing it behind themselves. The closest person it lands to will have to either do a Dare or answer a question. Whichever they choose. Anyone can ask or dare anything from the Person in question."

"Sounds good."

"Because you've never played before, you're going to go first," Susan smirked.

"That sounds less good," I muttered.

"So? Truth or Dare?" Susan said.

"I'll start with a light one, Truth."

"Awww, Come on." Desdemona moaned.

"Shut up, I have a good question!" Susan Said, and I wasn't too happy with that. Seeing as how she was a daughter of Aphrodite, the question was most probably going to be love related. I was already regretting joining the game. She cleared her throat. "Since when have you and Daniel been going out for?" She giggled, in that annoying way I always hated. While she was definitely more bearable than most of her Siblings, she still had some traits that I disliked about Kids of Aphrodite.

I sighed, "For about a day and a half."

"Wow. That's very cool. Good for you guys." John said, looking at Susan sternly. She blushed and ducked her head in apology. "Now throw the ball."

I turned around and chucked it behind me.

"Oh For Fuck's sake," I heard someone mutter. The ball had landed closest to Tony.

"How you doing, Tony?" I asked, smiling.

"I Choose Dare." He said.

"Okay, then..." I started thinking, and a plan started forming in my head. Something that killed two birds with one stone. "You need to use some of that Nature Magic of yours. Not now, but in an hour or so."

"And what for?"

"We need to somehow interrupt Daniel's nap-time."

Susan immediately laughed, and the others also grinned.

"Any specifications?"

"Be Creative." I grinned.

"Great, I've just been conscripted to the War of the Lovebirds." He muttered.

"Stop complaining."

"Fine, Fine."

He turned around and threw the ball again, but I couldn't help smiling. Daniel didn't know what was coming.

 ** _Daniel_**

Even after only a few minutes, the sun was burning my back, and I knew that no amount of sunscreen would fix my situation. Sleeping would be painful for a few days, but I couldn't do anything about it.

In the back of my head, somewhere, I could hear a warbled sound which I couldn't make out. I decided it was nothing.

Yet it was getting slightly louder, bothering me just enough to stop me from drifting off to sleep.

It turned out to be a voice, which I soon recognized, though what it was saying was still too unclear to make out.

 _Pandora._

Yeah, it was.

I Glanced around everywhere, not noticing where she was. After a good Month of seeing nothing of her, she was finally back.

"What is it Pandora?" I asked out loud, still not seeing her anywhere.

 _"Master, Master, Master, Master, Master..."_

"Yes?"

" _This is going to hurt."_

"Wait... Wh-" My Question of bewilderment was interrupted by a sudden pain on my sunburnt back.

I could only just stop myself from screaming out loud, which would most probably have caused everyone to look at me.

" _Sorry, Master."_

"That-That's Okay... Pandora." I muttered, "What brings you back?"

 _"I finished my job."_

I felt even more pain, this time further up my back. I turned around suddenly, and I saw Pandora flutter to the ground beside me as a large clawed eagle.

"Argh, FUCK!" I Muttered.

 _"I'm Sorry Again, Master."_

"Next time, please don't use my back as a landing strip."

 _"Yes, that would help."_

"How was your time in Rome?"

 _"The Romans have mostly rebuilt their city, so they didn't need me anymore."_

Before I could ask anything else, the phone that I had gotten from Harold, rang.

"Anything else that wants to happen now?"

 _"Not that I know of."_

"The Question was Rhetorical, Pandora."

I fished it out of my bag and looked at it. It showed a call sign, with Harold's Face on it.

According to Harold, the Phone was okay to use, still, I wasn't fully trusting the device.

I answered it.

"Hello?" Harold's Voice Crackled over the line.

"Hi."

"It works then, Okay. I'm not sure for how long."

"You mean you weren't even sure that it worked?"

"Umm..."

"Nevermind, what's the emergency? I'm currently trying to relax at the beach."

The line crackled.

"Hello?"

"The Connection is br...king up. Be...re of Mo-"

The line went dead.

"Great. That didn't take long. I hate phones."

 _"Yes. Phones are bad."_

I laid back down, closing my eyes. In what I felt was only a few seconds, I was shaken awake.

"Urgh." I moaned, opening an eye, only for me to realize I was suspended a few meters up in the air.

"WHAT THE FUCK?" I screamed.

Whatever was holding me suddenly let go, and my life played before my very eyes. I knew I shouldn't have trusted that phone. Fucking things always get me in trouble. Now I'm dead.

But I landed on something soft. Something softer than the Cold, hard, Unforgiving Ground. My heart was beating in my throat.

"What in the Gods of Olympus was that?"

Vines retreated into the sand, and Sophia jumped me from nowhere.

"Revenge!" She yelled.

"Fucking- You scared all Hades out of me Woman!"

"Well, I did tell you I'd get you back." She kissed me on the forehead. "Thanks, Tony."

"Yeah, now let's hurry back to the game."

"Tony, you were in it too?"

"It was a dare, man. Don't blame me, blame your girlfriend."

"Great."

Sophia was grinning. I reminded myself not to get on her bad side.

"Didn't the Mortals see this?" I asked.

"Mist is a powerful thing."

"Yeah, I know that, but what did they see instead of a massive plant abducting me."

"I don't know, but it must've not been too interesting."

Indeed, the mortals on the beach hadn't even batted an eyelash. Some were looking weirdly at me, probably after I had screamed for my life.

Pandora nuzzled the leg of Sophia.

"Oh, hey Pandora," Sophia said, scratching the bird under her chin.

 _"Hello."_ She purred.

"Dan, you should come and join in the fun."

"If you don't do what you just did again, I'm okay with going."

"Then come."

 ** _Many Hours Later_**

The Sun was setting, and everyone was getting bored. There was only so much time we could spend on the beach.

We decided that it was time to go back home, so we packed our stuff, and got dressed back into our clothes.

"You okay Sophia?"

"Yeah." She slapped me on the back.

"ARGH-" I held back a curse.

"Oh, sorry." She said, instant regret replacing her smile.

"It's- Fine."

She hugged me, which didn't feel much better, but I held back a scream.

We lugged everything back to the Van, where Argus was waiting. What he had done during the time between our arrival and now, nobody knew. Pandoran fluttered onto my shoulder as a Canary, and we all took our seats in the van.

Argus turned on the ignition, and another second later we were off.

Sophia huddled next to me, resting her head onto my free shoulder, her hair sticking up in random places, tickling my ear.

During the journey, Susan fell asleep on John, while Desdemona, Robert, and Tony were all talking quietly with one another.

In half an hour, we were back home. Once we arrived, we unloaded everything from the van and started walking up Half-Blood hill, where Chiron was already waiting for us.

"Welcome back!" He said once we were close enough."How was your day?"

"Very good. Thank you for the opportunity Chiron."

Everyone thanked Chiron, who just smiled, before walking off. Each of us said our goodbyes, before going off to our separate Cabins. I helped Sophia carry her stuff back to the Athena Cabin, before heading back to my own.

Once inside the Cabin, I dropped my stuff onto the floor, before undressing, and crawling into bed. Soon enough, I fell asleep.

 ** _Sophia_**

 ** _The Next Morning_**

I was being shaken from my sleep. It was Malcolm, and he sounded incredibly agitated.

"Sophia, Sophia, Wake up! Sophia!"

"What is it, Malcolm?"

 **"Daniel, He's Disappeared!"**


	2. The Pythia Wakes

**"What?"**

I wasn't sure I had heard him right.

"He's Gone!"

My eyes widened, and I immediately jumped up from bed, sprinting out of the door, not caring I was still in my PJ's.

"Sophia, Wai-" I pushed straight past John, who was trying to slow me down.

I climbed straight to the top of the small hill, where Daniel's Cabin stood. It was surrounded by Demigods as well as Chiron.

"Listen, Sophia, You mustn't act too hastily," Chiron said, standing next to a half-broken door.

"What happened?"

"We have no cl-" I didn't have time for this. I kicked open the remained of the door.

I gasped.

The entire room was a mess, One of his shelves were broken, his swimming stuff from yesterday was thrown around the room, and multiple nicks in the walls of the cabin revealed that it was created by a sword.

As for his robes and weapons, that should've been hanging on the clothes peg, they were gone.

I walked closer to the bed, and I let out a sob.

There were multiple massive stains of blood on the bed, as well as black drops of chaos. Either Daniel was dead, or he had disappeared somewhere. I was hoping for the best, but the amount of blood on the bed was too much for anyone to survive.

Chiron slowly walked in behind me.

"I'm Sorry Sophia." He said quietly.

"Why?" I cried, falling into the arms of Chiron.

"Do not cry, my Child." Said a voice that I vaguely recognized.

It wasn't Chiron's, that was for sure. It was way too deep.

I turned towards the voice. It came from the ornately decorated mirror sitting untouched on Daniel's desk.

The very same mirror that I had seen Daniel's Father talk from.

The mirror did not fail to show me him again. A man enveloped in the Dark substance of Chaos grinned at us.

I stared at the Mirror, just as speechless as last time.

Chiron was less surprised.

"My Lord, Ragnos!" He said, promptly falling to his knees.

"Hello Chiron," He said, before turning back towards me, "My sweet child, do not worry, for my son still lives. He has many tough trials before him, but for now, he is safe." He told me.

"Where is he, and how did he lose this much blood? How is he even bleeding?"

"His body has absorbed the energy of Chaos. Before, he was infused with Chaos. Now he is fully one with it. It's a good sign. His body is regaining some of its mortal properties. As for where he is, and what attacked him, I can't really answer it for you. It would only worry you further."

I swallowed a curse or two.

"Then what should I do?"

"You shall go on a quest for the Missing Girl. She is the key to the entire War."

"But Lord, the Oracle is silent, and we haven't gotten a prophecy from our Harpy," Chiron said.

"Wait a few hours, and that problem will be solved. Now, let me get to the part I really came for. For the Upcoming Quest, you'll need my gifts."

"Gifts?"

"Yes."

Then a trail of Black smoke blasted out of the Mirror and settled on the bed. A tall, slender, and extremely terrifying man congealed out of the smoke. He wore Black Armor, with a Broadsword strapped to his back, and a black staff in his hand. His face was pale and gaunt, his eyes were black as night. A scar crossed over his face.

"Lord Ragnos?" Chiron asked.

"Yes, it is me."

He cleared his throat.

"These are the gifts I bring."

Two items appeared in his outstretched hands, a scabbard and a metal canteen.

The Scabbard drew more attention to itself. It was made from chaos metal, and there were ornate carvings in it made of gold. It would be good for showing off.

"I can see on your face that you did not expect this. Let me tell you their powers before you go and decide that they are useless gifts."

And my sword appeared in his hands, which should have been impossible. It was still, supposedly, in the Athena Cabin, hung up in the Cupboard.

He sheathed the sword, which promptly disappeared.

I stayed quiet, remembering that calling the Lord of the very Universe an idiot wouldn't be too wise.

"As you just saw, your sword disappeared. The scabbard is bound to you, meaning the sword is also now bound to you. The sword weighs nothing in this state, and it will appear in your hand if you will it to."

"Really?"

"Try to concentrate on your right hand. Imagine it actually being there."

I closed my eyes and did just that. As soon as I pictured it in my mind, something heavy appeared in my hand, which surprised me so much that I nearly dropped the sword onto my toes.

This was incredible.

"It has many uses, but I'm sure you'll figure them out fast enough."

He looked at the other gift.

"This Canteen also has magical properties. While it looks like a normal canteen, I assure you, it is much more than that. This, like with the scabbard, is bound to you. Upon willing it to do so, it will fill with any fluid you want it to."

"Wow."

"Yes. Wow." Ragnos agreed. "You can't summon things with it indefinitely though. Nectar, Unicorn Draught, Greek Fire all tire the magic of the Canteen, and you won't be able to use it for a while after."

"Thank you."

"You're very welcome, Sophia."

"But why have you given these to me?"

"My son has taken a liking to you. That's a good thing, he needs more people he can trust. I wish to keep you alive while he's far from you."

"I could protect myself without these gifts."

He laughed.

"I can see what he likes about you. You most probably could, but these gifts allow for more options, and they might save you from a sticky situation or two."

I Frowned.

"Just like my Jennifer." Ragnos Sighed.

"Wha-"

He stood up.

"That was all the time I had. I must get back to my palace. Start your quest as soon as possible. Time, as of right now, is the most important resource you have. Use it well. Farewell, Chiron and Sophia."

He faded into Chaos Tendrils, which returned through the mirror.

"We should go," I told Chiron, before turning around, and walking out of the Cabin.

Chiron Followed.

"Sophia?" He asked.

"Yes?"

"The place of the kidnapping is in the girl's compartment of the Athena cabin, as you've probably already seen. The Hermes cabin gave some Police tape, from unknown sources, which we surrounded it with, but we've also pulled a curtain around it. I give you full access to all of the camp supplies and Quest items. Ragnos said we need to wait for a few hours, and then our problems are solved. I have no clue what that means, but it's probably important. War council will be called once you're done."

Chiron trotted away, towards the Big House.

I looked at the Cabin of Ragnos behind me, which reminded me of my Boyfriend.

"No, I mustn't worry about him. I have more important things to do. Ragnos said he's okay. That's enough for me."

I started walking back towards the Athena Cabin.

 ** _Daniel_**

 ** _Yesterday Night_**

I was awoken by the Phone, Vibrating against my desk.

"Can't I sleep in peace? It can't be that important." I muttered, but I still got up and answered the phone.

"Yes?" I yawned.

"Listen, Daniel. You've got to get out of there." Harold said, quite agitated.

"What's happening?"

"Just get out! We'll be there any second!"

Before I could answer, the call ended.

"They'll be too late, I'm afraid."

I whipped my head up, and a man stood in front of me, wearing black armor, and holding a two-handed Black Hammer in his hands. He was absolutely massive.

"Who in the fuck are you? How did you get in?"

"That does not matter."

The cold tingling sensation ran down my neck, and I immediately reached for my swords, which hung on the coat rack. They flew out of their scabbards, straight for my hand. I caught them, which should have been a bit intimidating, but the man only laughed.

"Your Tricks with Chaos won't scare me. Maybe my brothers, who only dare fight your father in hordes, would run away screaming, but I've been trained for too long for a few wafts of the Power of Chaos to scare me. I am the Master's Chosen. One of the first to have been created. I've fought your kind before. Always so weak."

"I don't know who you are, but if you do not leave, I will have to kill you."

"I'd like to see you try."

I charged at the Man, but he just backhanded me, making me fly into my wall, breaking my shelves. Books crashed down onto me.

"Urgh," I muttered, getting back up.

"You don't even deserve my hammer. You are weak, Son of Chaos."

I grabbed a book and threw it at the large man. The man stared at the book, which bounced off of his breastplate harmlessly. I took the small distraction I had created, to charge forward once again, this time sliding under the swing of the man's hand. I stabbed one of the swords into his shin.

To my horror, he just laughed, before pulling the sword out of his leg and throwing it away.

"Maybe not so weak then, but tricks won't defeat me."

"It seems to work."

The man narrowed his eyes and hefted his hammer up into both hands. I noticed that while the head of the massive weapon was made of Chaos metal, the hilt was created from wood. It did give off a strange glow, but wood was still only just wood.

The Giant of a man swung the hammer at me, but the swing was slow.

I kicked the closest thing on the ground, my swimming stuff, towards the man, covering him in saltwater-soaked clothes, and causing his swing to sail over my head.

"What is this?" He roared indignantly.

I chopped at the hilt of his weapon, breaking it in two, and causing the man to fall over at the sudden change in weight.

"NO!" He yelled, but the combination of clothes, and him falling over was enough for me to get my stuff off of the pegs. Pandora had disappeared from her cage. She had flown home yesterday, and she had been sleeping in it when I had arrived. Now she was nowhere to be seen.

Just as I was about to run out of the door, the man was finally able to uncover his eyes, previously blocked by my shorts. He threw his broken hilt at me, still sharp on the end from the splinters. I heard a wet thud, followed by a dull pain in my lower back. I looked down, and a wooden shaft protruded from my stomach.

I collapsed on the spot.

"You thought you could best me?" The Man roared.

I said nothing, trying to bear the pain.

The man stood up, and walked up to me, pulling out the shaft.

He then grabbed me by the head, and threw me across the room, smashing me against my wall once again. This time I landed on my bed, where blood started to drench the sheets.

"NOBODY IS BETTER THAN ME!" He yelled, stepping forward, ready to finish me off.

Suddenly, he gasped, dropping the broken shaft. Something was sticking through his black armor.

"This... Cannot... Be..." He muttered before a second sword took off his head.

The monster of a man fell sideways, before turning to dust, and floating off into the air. A new figure stood behind the now dead man, but my vision was getting more and more blurry.

"Stay with us for a minute!"

I recognized the voice to be Harold's.

"Harold?" I muttered.

The figure rushed towards me, and everything went black.

 _ **A few** **hours** **later.**_

"SHIT!" I screamed, sitting up suddenly in a hospital bed.

"Stay still Sir! The wound might reopen." It was Isaac.

I was able to calm myself down after a few deep breaths.

"Here, drink this." Isaac handed me a glass of Nectar, which I drank thankfully.

"How long have I been out for?"

"Just a few hours."

"The wound. My Stomach. How am I alive?"

Isaac snorted.

"Harold is amazing at healing, no matter what he says. We could use someone like him as a Field Doctor."

"Where am I?"

"On the Endurance."

"So Harold is here then."

"He's up on the Command deck. I'm guessing you want to-"

"See him, yes."

He sighed.

"Don't let my hard work go to waste. Your walking stick is here."

I smiled, before getting up slowly. Even with the help of Nectar, it was still painful to move.

"Thank you."

I had left the walking stick on the Endurance when we had arrived at Camp Half-Blood because I didn't need it. My body canceled aches and pains after a few hours. I was thankful that it was still on board.

After saying a quick goodbye to Isaac, I walked out of the door of the Infirmary and started going up the many stairs of the Ship.

It was a sweaty journey, but after what felt like forever, I managed to walk up to the command deck.

Harold was sitting in his chair, looking at a screen. It showed a map of the world.

"Hey, Harold," I muttered

Instantly he jumped up and looked at me.

"Daniel! Are you okay?"

"I'm still in one piece, and I have you to thank for that, I guess." I smiled.

"Partially, yes. Isaac did a lot of work though."

I cleared my throat, before looking him in the eyes.

"To start things off, please explain to me what the fuck happened in my cabin."

Harold sighed.

"I didn't want to tell you about it yet. You see Sir, we have many enemies, and some of them we had thought were dead. Dispersed into atoms. Yet he has managed to wake again, slowly growing in power as time went on. Across Eons. He managed to stay hidden from Ragnos until his power nearly matched him. That's what your father's trying to stop with his own army. He's fighting this very enemy."

"Who is this?" My face paled.

"Leit. A Rival of your father, back when only Chaos reigned. Since Tartarus conquered the underworld, Leit too has started his attack against your Father. The First assault allowed dozens of his soldiers, the so-called Leituses, to get past his Army. They've joined Tartarus, and they're strong. There's one thing they fear though. It's the Power of Ragnos, which they don't dare to take on by themselves, but rather in hordes of thousands."

"So this was one of them?"

"Not Quite. Leit has had a group of minions, more powerful than what he has right now. Six Dozen of them. They are the Chosen, more powerful than you would think. A few of them have been walking around this Earth for Millenia, taking up the Pictures of Famous Warlords and Mythical People. They do not fear Ragnos and are overcome by Hubris. That doesn't mean that they are weak, as you saw."

"Six dozen of these guys?"

"Well originally there were that many, but over the time they've been here, Heroes and the Assassins have managed to kill quite a few of them. In turn, they've killed many of our own Brothers and Sisters."

"Do we have anything to even fight them?"

"We do have the Phoenix Squad."

"That's the first time I'm hearing of them."

"You can spot the difference about them because of the markings they carry. Orange Decoration, and a Phoenix on their Right Breast pocket."

"And what do they do differently from any normal Assassins?"

"Assassins are mainly trained to work as a Team. Using the Powers given to them by the Gods can cause problems with that. The Phoenix squad are encouraged to use these powers, and are trained specifically to be dangerous when using said skills."

"Are they good?"

Harold Chuckled.

"They've managed to hunt down and killed Fourteen Chosen since they were created Two hundred years ago."

"That's a pretty nice number," I said.

"This Chosen was hunted for a long time, but it always eluded us. Mordred was its name. It fought King Arthur, and killed him."

"Wait, the King Arthur? The One from the Legends?"

"Yes, he was a son of Zeus and descendant of Ares. Pretty strong, and one of the few outsiders that knew, and supported us until death."

"Interesting."

"It is. The history taught to the mortals is filled with false realities." Harold grunted.

"But back to the topic, you said that only some of the Chosen walked Earth."

"Yes, but most of them stayed in hiding, save the few that actively took part in history. Now that Leit has shown himself again, they'll probably flock to Tartarus."

"And how many of these Leituses got past my Fathers defenses?"

"Two Hundred, that's the last info we've gotten about it."

"Great. Why did you call me though?"

"I was trying to warn you about Mordred. Once they show themselves, it's easy to track them, and we found his trail. He was waiting for the right moment to strike, and just by his presence alone, the signal of the phone got messed up. It had been following you all day, waiting for the best moment to strike. His blustering didn't mean he wasn't scared about you. He waited for you to be defenseless and asleep."

I shuddered.

"What about the Island? How far away are we?" I asked.

"About half an hour."

"Can't we use the Storm Spirits to get there faster?"

"Using them this close to the HQ would be too dangerous. We would run the risk of destroying the ship, and a part of the island too."

"So then we wait?"

"Yes."

"Will anything attack us?"

"I hope not."

Before I could ask any more questions, Pandora fluttered down from the top deck, onto my shoulder.

I looked at her sternly.

"Where were you when I needed you the most?"

She bowed her head.

 _"This foul thing tricked me. Spoke like the voice of my Creator, telling me to fly away towards the Chaos Isle. Only when I sensed that you were in danger, did I realize what had happened. By then, I was too far away to help. I'm sorry, master."_

"Don't worry. Happens with everyone." I said, stroking her head, before looking back at Harold, "What about the Persians?"

"What about them?"

"You never really even explained what they were doing there. I didn't even know that there was a Persian Camp."

Harold sighed.

"There are many secrets still in the world. Most of the Ancient Cultures still stand today, some even the Campers know about. While some have stayed secretive and small throughout the millennia, others have built massive empires, disguised behind companies, or in the case of the Persians, Countries."

"What does that mean?"

"The Persians, more so, the demigods of Persian Gods, created a small cult in Spain when it was still under Moor control. They managed to survive when the Moors were expelled from Iberia. When Colonialism was at large, they managed to fund the building of multiple colonies in modern-day Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico. They've moved their Base of Operations over to Colombia, where they are able to control the Governments of most South American Countries, unbeknownst to others. They've gotten rich from sponsoring Illegal Activities, recruiting and brainwashing millions to join their army. Apart from the Immortals and Captains, all other soldiers in their army are Mortals. While searching for the Chosen, we found one of their ports, where they attacked us. Since then, we've been at war with their King, King Shradeth."

"So there are, let's say, Egyptian Gods still out there?"

"Yes. They might not have as many demigod children as the Gods of Olympus, but they are still very much out there."

"That's really interesting."

"It is until you realize that most of the Enemies of Ancient Greece and Rome are still alive, and they've all sided with Tartarus."

"Oh..."

"Yes."

"Sir, I hate to interrupt..." The Girl called Trinity said.

"Yes, what is it?" Harold asked.

"Blips have appeared on the Radar."

"How many?"

"They are growing every second."

"Speak of the Devil..." Harold muttered angrily.

"Again?"

"Yes, they want to kill you."

"Great, does everyone want to kill me?"

"Not yet." He told me, sitting back down.

"Thanks."

Harold stepped towards his microphone.

" _This is not a drill, I repeat, this is not a drill. We are under attack. Everyone ready up for a fight."_

"They can't reach us, can they?"

"Persian ships are faster than us but more fragile. Let's hope the wind favors us."

Something smacked against the side of the ship, and the entire ship tilted sideways.

 ** _Sophia_**

"This is weird," I muttered.

"What is?" Malcolm asked.

"Apart from this blood and cloth, both of which glow eerily, there are no other clues."

"What could the glowing mean?"

"I have some ideas, but I need to hear the prophecy for the quest, to see if it helps in any way. Let's hope those hours have gone by."

"Should I run and talk with Chiron?"

"I'd be thankful."

He ran off, and a few minutes later, a horn sounded from the big house, signaling a War Council.

I got up from the floor and walked towards the Big house. I was one of the last to enter the door.

"Sophia please take a seat," Chiron said.

When the last guy, Chuck from the Hypnos Cabin, entered the room, the Council started.

"Sophia, please tell us what you've deducted."

"Well, apart from the fact that there was some blood and a piece of cloth, nothing. They both glowed with a silvery light."

"What do you mean by that?"

"I don't know. I'm suspecting the Hunters of Artemis."

"Really?" Chiron's eyes widened.

"I doubt anyone else could have done this, without waking anybody during the kidnapping."

"Sophia, the Hunters are protected by Artemis, we don't want to upset the Gods, especially during a time like this."

"It's just a suspicion of mine, but to be sure, I'd need a prophecy."

Everyone looked at Julia, who just shrugged.

"I don't have anything, as always. It's like I'm not even a Pythia."

"Ragnos said something will happen in a few hours. I've already taken apart the entire Athena Cabin, which took more than a few hours, and yet nothing has happened. That means it might happen any minute now."

"Gods sometimes misjudge time," Chiron suggested.

"Yeah, that's probably the case, cause nothing's really happening," Julia muttered, looking at her hands.

Thunder boomed in the air, and everyone jumped. The lights went out, and a green glow enveloped Julia. Slowly, Green gas flowed over the floor, enveloping her. She spoke in a voice, that sounded many millennia older than she was.

" _I am FREE!"_ She shouted.

Then her face contorted, her eyes turned green, and she started jerking around like I was watching some sort of exorcism. She was spouting dozens of different sentences at once. Prophecies. Prophecies that had already passed.

Suddenly the sentences melded into one, and it was clear as glass.

 _"In the Years of Chaos, it takes place,_

 _A test, the power of the Gods will face,_

 _A Broken Oath will save the day,_

 _But in his life, he will have to pay."_

 _..._

The Oracle cut off as if wanting to say more, but not being able too.

After a bit more spasming, the Oracle of Delphi started a different Prophecy.

 _"For this Quest, you shall seek,_

 _The Immortal Hunters wreathed in light,_

 _The Lost Sun, you shall meet,_

 _and the Storm, you shall fight._

 _Despair, you shall, when it breaks free,_

 _For it is the Gods' biggest enemy,_

 _When Golden Ichor drenches his feet,_

 _Only then, will he return to endless sleep._

 _Shore up Defenses, for war draws close,_

 _And Graves will lie in tidy rows,_

 _At the Foot of Olympus, it will decide,_

 _If the Gods can turn the tide."_

The room was completely silent. Julia Collapsed onto her Chair.

"What in the name of the gods just happened?" Bruce asked, standing up from his seat.

"I have never seen the Oracle behave this way," Chiron muttered. "Neither do I know why, after One Hundred and Fifty Years, the Oracle has decided to return, using different forms of Rhymes then before."

"It was trapped, by... Something. I could feel it." Julia said, sweat dripping down her cheeks.

"Well, that's not good." John murmured.

"And what about that Prophecy it stopped saying halfway through?"

"It's never happened before. Maybe the lack of Apollo caused it to stop. That might have been our Great Prophecy."

" _In the years of Chaos?"_ Desdemona said, "That sounds like a description of what's happening right now."

"And someone will have to pay in his life. A Broken Oath." I added.

"That's Daniel." Said a new voice. It was Rebecca. She had appeared from upstairs.

"Rebecca! Where have you been? I haven't seen you since you've returned from Camp Jupiter." Chiron exclaimed.

"Spying a bit in the underworld. I might have some good info for the quest."

"We could use some of that." Bob scoffed.

"I heard the Prophecy. The _Immortal Hunters wreathed in light_ must mean the Hunters of Artemis. They are constantly on the move, so finding them would be hard. They do have allies though. The Amazons are a good place to start your search."

"You mean the Man-Killing Women?" Robert asked.

"Yes."

"Rebecca, we could have figured this out by ourselves, do you have any news about the monsters in general?"

"Actually, yes. Tartarus is gathering an army. He has, once again, Chained the Doors of Death, and Monsters are flocking to join his ranks. They will most probably march through Europe, but that's not important right now. Apart from a few, more independent monsters, most of them have left America altogether, making it safe for a bigger group to go on this quest."

"But the-" Chiron tried saying.

"Yes, the Ancient Rules say differently, we know Chiron, but we are in a War. Three demigods won't be enough, I know that much."

"Fine." Chiron huffed.

"Okay, cool. With all this in mind, who wants to come with me?" I asked.

A few hands went up. John and Robert immediately put their hands up, followed by Desdemona's and Susan's.

"Is this all, anyone else? Becks? Bruce?"

"Some of us have to set up defenses for the Camp. The Prophecy clearly said that." Rebecca told me.

"I agree with Rebecca," Bruce said. "Taking all the Counsellors with you would be unwise. I'm staying."

Malcolm raised his hand tentatively.

"You want to come, Malcolm?"

"Uhhh... Sure."

"Nice, I'll also check if Tony wants to come after the Council, and then we're good to go."

We all turned to look at Chiron, who was staring at the place where Julia had been floating only a few minutes ago.

"Is everyone sure?" Chiron asked.

"Yes." We chorused.

"In that case, the War Council is Dismissed."

 _ **Four Hours Later**_

"Okay, is everyone here?" I asked, standing at the head of the table.

In the end, we were Six. Tony said he wasn't coming because he was about to embark on his own journey to search for something for the Council of the Cloven Elders. He was very secretive about it, so I didn't ask questions.

Since both me and Malcolm were going, the Athena Cabin needed a Temporary Leader, so I chose the oldest guy there, Justin Montana.

Everyone murmured a "H _ere"._

"Okay, so we've got the supplies. A Canteen of Nectar, Five Squares of Ambrosia and Five Golden Drachmas per Person. John and Malcolm, You're also taking Quivers, and we'll also have a first aid kit for any wounds that aren't life-threatening. Apart from that, we've got some food and clothes."

"Yep," John said, and the others nodded.

"I still can't find my hat, which is annoying. Apart from that, there aren't any problems on my end. Now, about the plan."

Malcolm took over from me.

"So, we're going by train, as it's the easiest way of getting us to San Francisco. We'll first stop at the Roman Camp so that they can tell us where we can find the Amazon Queen, and in the process, we could get a few more people into our Crew. This is our plan for now."

"I still don't like how we're walking into a building owned by Fearsome Man-Killing Warrior Women," Robert said.

"We'll try and not get you boys killed." Susan smiled.

"It wouldn't be a good way to go out." John agreed.

"Is everyone ready to go?"

Everyone nodded.

 **"Then Let's get going, we have a train to catch."**


	3. By Endurance, we Conquer

**_Daniel_**

"Prepare weaponry!" Harold shouted, after regaining balance. "Damage report!"

"The shot was deflected by our armor."

"How many are there on the Radar now, Trinity?"

"At least thirty, Sir."

"We have to hold them back. Our goal is to reach Chaos Isle, with the Grand Master alive and well."

"Can we outrun them?" I asked Harold.

"No. We have to hope for the best."

"SIR! They're quicker than last time!"

"Some new technology, I bet," Harold muttered, before reaching for his microphone again.

 _"Situation Five! I Repeat Situation Five!"_

"What's that?"

"Prepare for boarding," Harold said while looking at one of his screens. "Everyone, Fire at Will!"

The entire ship shook from the rumble that came from the top deck, and it was followed by explosions further away.

"Ninety Percent of that First wave was destroyed, Sir!"

"RELOAD!"

A rumble came from upstairs again, but this time it was interrupted by a crash, which sent the entire ship sideways. I was holding on to a railing, so I didn't fall onto my ass this time.

"Everyone! GO! GO! GO!" Harold yelled, and around twenty Assassins ran up the stairs.

Dozens of Thuds resonated through the hull.

"They're Clamped on!"

The Clashing of weapons soon followed.

"Carl, Activate the Hydra Missiles!"

"Right away sir!"

A Clunk came from outside, most probably the missiles.

"Can I help with anything, Harold?"

"Wait a-"

Harold was interrupted by a loud crash coming from the Stairs.

An Assassin flopped down them, step-by-step until he reached the bottom, tangled in his robe. Blood was dripping from his mouth and multiple arrows were poking out of his chest. Three men in rags ran down the steps after the Assassin.

"For...Ragnos..." The Assassin gurgled on the floor, throwing a small ball at the enemy with his last bit of strength.

The ball exploded behind the three Persians, scattering them with tiny needles of Chaos Metal. All three of them fell down dead.

"We need more men up there!" Harold said, and a few people stood up from their chairs, and drew swords, before running upstairs.

"I'll go."

Harold looked at me and nodded, "Be careful."

"I will be. Pandora, Come!"

Drawing my swords, I ran up the stairs after the others, ignoring the pain in my stomach.

"Trinity, contact HQ immediately. Tell them to expect us with enemies on our tail." I heard Harold say as I ran up to the top deck.

As soon as my head cleared the railings, I noticed that we weren't doing well.

The Assassin's fighting on the deck were outnumbered at least three-to-one by Persians.

Behind me, a massive Rocket Battery ejected its payload, and they headed towards the Ships closing in on the Endurance.

The ships were much smaller than ours, and the sides of the Endurance were dotted with Grappling hooks.

I followed the path of the Hydra Missiles, which was easy since they left a white trail behind themselves.

Once they reached the ship, each Missile split up into multiple smaller Missiles and crashed into the Ships. The Horizon briefly lit up with the golden light of explosions, and the rumble carried across the waves. As the smoke and Debris cleared though, I noticed that the rockets hadn't even made a dent in their fleet, and new ships took over the place of the destroyed ones.

Pandora took off from my shoulder, becoming bigger as she flew towards the enemy.

Out of nowhere, an arrow whistled above my head, reminding me that I had something else to do.

"Shit." I yelped, before turning in the direction the arrow had come from. Close by, a Persian man dropped his bow and came running towards me with his sword.

I ducked under his swing, cutting through his leg, and leaving him on the floor.

A Woman, who was clearly the leader, yelled an order in Spanish, and most of the Persians disengaged, charging towards me instead.

One of them threw a grenade at me, but I grabbed it mid-air, throwing it back at him. It exploded on impact, killing quite a few of them.

Ten Persians surrounded me, but they weren't keen on attacking me. I helped them decide what to do next, by charging at the Soldier right in front of me. He held up a Woven Shield, but my swords cut through them, like a hot knife through butter. As the man fell to the ground dead, I grabbed a grenade off of his chest, before priming it, and throwing it behind me.

It exploded, sending splinters in every direction, killing most of the loosely dressed Persian Soldiers. For a split second, I was scared that the Ship's deck would now have a massive hole in it, but it was most probably enchanted, and when the smoke cleared, there was only a small indentation.

The Assassins fighting on the deck were slowly surrounding the Commander, who was inside a defensive circle of her own soldiers. These soldiers wore some sort of armor, so they must have been bodyguards.

"Sir, what should we do with them?" An Assassin asked, running over to me.

"Listen up! Surrender to us now, and you will be taken, prisoner. No further harm will come to you or your soldiers!" I shouted to the Commander.

"I'd rather choose death." She spat, "FOR KING SHRADETH!"

The Soldiers yelled with their Commander and charged against the encircling Assassins. They were cut down instantly.

I walked in between the Ranks of the Assassins, and on the floor lay the Commander, bleeding from a stomach injury. My own injury had opened up, and it was starting to stain my robes, but I had more important things to do.

"Brother?" I asked, placing a hand on the nearest Assassin's Shoulder.

"Yes, Sir?"

"What is your name?"

"Sergeant James Forest."

"Sergeant, Please take this woman down to Senior Doctor Isaac. We need her alive for Info. Take two other Assassins with you."

He saluted, before turning to two others.

"Rightion, Krotus. Disarm this woman, and follow me down to the Infirmary."

"Right away." They Chorused.

After quickly patting her down, they picked her up and took her away.

I turned to another Assassin, who noticed I was looking at him, and he stood to attention.

"Brother, what is your name?"

"Private Ben Hallis."

"Private, I trust you to relay the information. Cut off every Hook, before collecting the dead. Persians go overboard, Assassin's get taken down. After that, we form ranks back up here."

"Yes, Grand Master!" He saluted, before running around, sharing the orders.

I sighed, before walking back down to the command deck. Harold was issuing orders left and right.

"Carl, get ready for the second volley of Hydra Missiles, Abbey, get ready for Order Twenty-Nine, Kaine, deploy mines!"

He took a deep breath and noticed me.

"Everything good?" He asked, looking at the blood seeping from my stomach.

"Yes."

"There's some bad news. We won't be having another boarding party."

"But- That's good, no?" I asked, confused.

"Not with the Persians. We've detected a number of warships. Persian warships carry multiple Onagers on board. We won't survive for long if those start bombarding us."

"Shit. How much longer do we have to run for?"

"Fifteen Minutes."

"That's too much."

"I know." He said.

Alarms started to blare around me, accompanied by red flashing lights. All the Assassins on the top deck instantly came running down the stairs.

"Multiple Projectiles Fired!" Trinity said.

"BRACE YOURSELVES!" Harold Roared.

The entire ship rocked so violently, I thought we were dead right then and there.

I opened my eyes, and couldn't help but feel happy. Somehow we were still alive.

"Sir! All of the Deck-based weapons have gone offline!"

"Damn it! List to Port, and give them a broadside!"

The ship turned quickly, and a roar went down the length of the ship, as every cannon was fired.

"Most of the enemy ships have been destroyed!" Trinity said from the Radar, once my ears had stopped ringing.

"Good. We've bought ourselves a few minutes." Harold said.

"Wait. Something new has appeared on the screen." She said. "It's about to hit us."

We braced, but nothing happened.

A few seconds later, Pandora fluttered down from the top deck as a Pigeon. One of her wings was at a weird angle.

"What happened to you?" I asked.

" _The Persians were prepared to fight me. They broke my wing with some sort of special weapon."_

"Go down to Isaac, see if he can do anything."

She dropped to the floor and waddled off on two legs.

Harold was looking at me with one eyebrow raised.

"She says that the Persians were prepared to fight her. They must be fighting for Tartarus."

"That is possible. Trinity, keep me updated!"

"More Persians have arrived!"

"When will we get to Chaos Isle?" I asked.

"Twelve minutes."

I looked at Harold, who wasn't exactly ecstatic.

"We can do this," I said, gritting my teeth.

Once again, the alarms started blaring.

"Sir! Another Volley of-"

Most of the Command deck was suddenly engulfed in flames, and only my quick reflexes saved me from dying. I brought up my robe in the last second to protect my face from splinters.

"SAVE WHOEVER YOU CAN!" I roared, and most of the Assassin's jumped up and started tugging their brothers out of the wreckage.

For the third time, the Alarms came on.

"Shit." Was all I could say before the Projectiles collided. The force of the blast knocked me off my feet, and against the wall.

Everything went black.

 ** _The General_**

"My Master!" I said, kneeling in front of the Throne of Tartarus.

"What is it, my General?"

"I come bearing good news!"

"Spit it out." He sneered.

"King Shradeth of Persia has contacted us, saying that his Navy is on the brink of destroying one of their ships, along with the Grand Master."

"Very good. They're not as incompetent as I thought then."

"The extra resources and blueprints most probably helped them," I said.

"True." Tartarus mused.

"What will our next move be?"

"Most of our forces have already joined us, so we will march out at dawn. You will contact my Sister to get ready. We'll march through Europe, towards the Atlantic."

"Anything specific I should say to the troops?"

"HA! TROOPS! These things aren't Troops, General. They are Monsters that would like nothing better than to tear apart a demigod. Troops are somewhat sophisticated. But these things? Nothing but Cannon Fodder. Only Good because they are easily replaceable."

"Yes Lord, of course."

"Tell them to get ready."

"Do you wish me to send a message to our Southern Forces too?"

"No, I wish to speak with the Augur Myself."

"Yes, Lord."

"Dismissed General."

I bowed, before walking out of the Mobile Throne Room of Lord Tartarus. In front of me, an army of uncountable monsters camped. It seemed like they never ended. On the Horizon, complete darkness enveloped the Mountains. Night was there.

A Dracaena slithered up to me, in her hand a Megaphone. I grabbed it and put it to my mouth.

"PASS THE WORD! BREAKING CAMP AT DAWN!" I yelled into it.

The Rustling of monstrous voices grew ever louder as the command passed down the Infinite ranks of the Army.

I felt like the back of my neck was being stabbed by knives. Behind me stood a woman, two meters tall, a murderous glint in her eyes.

"Eris," I said, shuddering.

"I believe you want a message taken to my Mother." The goddess of Strife replied.

"You shouldn't listen in to the conversations I have with my Master."

She glared at me, making me step back.

"Tell her to start marching towards the Atlantic as soon as possible."

"As you wish." She said, mocking me, before turning into thin air.

Standing face to face with the Goddess of Strife wasn't a comfortable feeling. I sighed.

My watch was ticking ever closer to dawn. Monsters don't need sleep, but I do.

 ** _The Augur_**

"Christopher." A Spine chilling voice whispered from behind me. Nobody called me that nowadays. Except for one person that is. Tartarus.

I turned around and looked at the Large, intimidating form of my new Lord.

"Yes, master?"

"How is the army doing?"

"It is doing well, we have collected thousands of soldiers from many different sources."

"I must say, I'm impressed with your progress."

"Thank you, Lord. If the Gods and their Children weren't so good at collecting enemies, this wouldn't have been possible."

"Are you ready to do my bidding?" He asked.

"Yes."

"I'm sure you've already got an Army on the way to Seattle, am I correct?"

"Yes. I'm here with them."

"Good. Contact your Bodyguard, Dravin, to bring you more soldiers. You'll need it."

"Why? The Amazons will be easily defeated without the need for more soldiers."

"A Spy has told me that the Greeks have moved out on a quest. It was to be expected too after I ordered the Snake to move from Delphi."

"A few greeks won't cause too many problems."

"They'll have a Roman legion backing them by the time they reach Seattle. Do not underestimate them." He growled.

"Yes. Sorry, my Lord."

He disappeared, leaving behind a red glow.

I sighed.

A Knock came from the front door, and I opened it. There stood Commander Tarik, who was my Second-in-command, appointed to me by King Shradeth.

"I heard someone in there with you, is everything going to plan?"

"Yes, get the army ready, we'll be leaving soon."

He nodded and walked away.

Closing the door behind him, I sat down at a desk and started writing a letter for Dravin. Next to me, a framed picture stood.

I looked at it, before throwing the picture of the family this house belonged to towards the kitchen.

It landed with a soft thump on their bodies.

War is a terrible thing.

 ** _Daniel_**

"Sir!"A Voice came. It was muffled. "SIR!"

I returned to consciousness and noticed Harold's face was only a few centimeters from my own. Blood was trickling down the side of his face, and he was sooty.

He pulled his fingers away from my temple.

"Good your back." He muttered.

"What-"

The Entire ship shook as multiple things crashed onto the deck.

"We've taken volley after volley of missiles, and we won't survive for much longer. You're our last hope! Do something!" He roared, pulling me onto my feet.

I racked my brain, but my head was still spinning from falling over. Whatever Harold had done was definitely helping, and I managed to put together a rough plan in my head.

"Okay. Concentrate on getting to Chaos Isle. I'm going upstairs."

"Good luck." He said, before turning around, and giving orders to what remained of the crew.

"Pandora. Stay here." I told my pet, who I had noticed hopping from foot-to-foot, her wing bandaged.

I ran up the stairs and nearly burned to cinders in the process, as a ball of white-hot death crashed against the top deck.

"Shit!" I yelled as it singed the side of my face.

Gritting my teeth, I went climber the remaining few steps, already turning towards the enemy ships. They were really close.

Nothing came to my mind, other than to release all hell on them.

After sending a ball of Chaos at a ship, I realized how fucked I was. The Ship was destroyed, but I felt all power leave my legs, and I fell to my knees.

There was no other hope for me, so I closed my eyes.

"Father! I pray to you! Help me defeat the enemy. Lend me your strength, so I don't kill myself." I yelled into the air, opening my eyes once again.

At first, nothing happened, which made me feel worried. Then something appeared on the horizon, bigger than the Persians. Black storm clouds gathered, faster than what should have been possible, blocking the light of the Sun.

 ** _"SON OF CHAOS!"_** Roared a voice. _**"DO NOT WASTE THIS OPPORTUNITY!"**_

It wasn't the voice of my father, but I wasn't going to complain. I have no idea how, but I suddenly knew what I had to do.

I started to concentrate my energy into my hands. With every second that passed, the pain grew more and more unbearable. Yet I still held it, knowing full well that it wasn't enough yet.

" **NOW!"** The Voice yelled, and I let go of the ball, collapsing onto the deck of the Endurance, the wood filled with holes, and a Giant Area was collapsed in on itself.

I saw the Ball of Pure Chaos fly into the storm clouds, and they turned pitch black.

Laughter, that didn't sound sane, bounced over the Ocean.

For every ship the Persians had, there came down a Bolt of Black Lightning, smashing them into atoms. The Soundwave was strong enough to rock the boat.

Splinters rained down on me.

"Son of Chaos, Daniel James Greenfield." It was the same voice that had talked to me.

I turned my head to the voice, and on the deck stood a Grey Bearded Figure, wearing a sky-blue tuxedo.

"Rarely does the King of the Gods help out a Demigod. Do not squander this gift."

"Zeus?"

"The Fates haven't finished with you yet." He muttered, before disappearing into gold dust.

My eyes rolled into the back of my head, and I was out for the count.

 ** _Sophia_**

My fingers were nervously tapping against my thigh. We had now been on the train for half an hour, and the Nemean Lion attack was on my mind.

"Stop worrying, Soph," John said.

"Yeah, it's easy for you to say."

The Food Cart rattled past our door, and John bought a newspaper.

"Thank you, Miss." He said, closing the door, before handing it to me. "Read. That will help you to forget about your worries."

I took it from his hands. "Thanks."

Reading whilst being Dyslexic is hard work, but John was right.

Looking around the small Wagon Cabin, I saw everyone else was either sleeping, like Susan, who was sleeping on John's shoulder, and Robert, who was drooling onto the Windowsill.

Desdemona had changed Robert's Apple into a mouse, and she was now playing with it and Malcolm was solving a Sudoku Puzzle book.

I relaxed a bit and opened the Newspaper, a picture greeted me of Daniel, as well as a sketch of me and Nico.

"Oh Gods of Olympus," I muttered, closing it, hoping it was just a bad dream.

"What is it?"

I showed him the Article. He read it aloud. He wasn't dyslexic, which made him lucky.

" _Missing Child from Woodfigh High school, Daniel James Greenfield, along with two others of unknown identity are suspected of causing the Train Crash in June. If anyone has any information about them, please contact your nearest authorities."_

"Great. Now I've also got to hide my face."

"The Sketch isn't the best, so don't worry about it."

He showed me the picture they had sketched about me, and he was right. My nose and eyebrows weren't right. At least I hoped they weren't.

John handed me the Newspaper back.

I looked at the other Articles in the Newspaper. There was still a story about the increased Tornado and storm Activity in Tornado Alley.

Something else caught my eye.

"This looks interesting," I muttered.

"What does?"

" _Solar Flare causes country-wide blackouts in Greece. Scientists report many more countries might get affected in the near future."_

"My Father?" He asked.

"I don't think so. _The loss of power has also caused massive amounts of data loss, sending people into a never before seen frenzy as they lose their life's savings due to bank accounts crashing. Strikes turning into violent conflicts against law enforcement and Military are now an everyday occurrence."_

"That doesn't sound too good. I'm guessing there's something there that the Mist is helping to cover up.

"Tartarus's hand is most probably in this too. Who knows what allies he's gained since he's risen."

"Let's not brood over this. Our quest takes place far from Greece and Europe. We can't do anything." John said, ending the discussion abruptly.

The rest of the newspaper was stuff I had already heard of. The "Terror Attacks" in Los Angeles weren't stopping, and they're now trying to evacuate what remains of the city. There was a small article about murders along the west coast, where entire families were killed in their homes.

I had a feeling that these were also connected to Tartarus.

"Maybe you need some sleep," John told me.

"What would make you think that?"

"You've been worrying about everything. Daniel, Jenny, and now Tartarus. It can't be good for you."

"I just want to help them." I sighed.

"We can all understand that, but right now, we have a quest. You can't be in multiple places at once."

"I Know-"

"Just sleep, Sophia. Doctor's Orders" He said.

"You're right." I yawned, closing my eyes.

The train jerked to a stop, which woke me up. It was noon, which meant I had slept for a good few hours. The others were also waking up.

"We there?" I asked.

John was looking outside with a raised eyebrow, Malcolm had looked up from his puzzle book, and Desdemona had pocketed the mouse.

"What's going on?" Malcolm muttered.

"Why are we stopping?" I said, directing the question towards John.

"No Idea."

"That's not a good sign," I muttered, reaching for my sword instinctively, only to realize I no longer had to wear it on my waist. I saw everyone else's hand twitching towards their weapons hidden away in pockets and trouser legs.

The wagon door was violently torn to the side, surprising me so much that I didn't have enough time to summon my weapon.

A knife flashed in the hand of John, Robert held a hammer, Desdemona held some kind of bomb, and Malcolm had unsheathed his sword.

Standing in the door was a man, wearing black plate armor, two swords across his back.

"And now, you die." It hissed.

The next second, we were flying through the air.

 ** _The General_**

I woke up to the feeling of being poked in the stomach with a metal rod.

"Sir, Sir. It's important!"

"Who- What-" I looked at the living corpse that was King Midas. "What is it, King?" I asked, growling.

"Message from the Spy!"

"Greek?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Dismissed," I said, and he walked off.

Even though he was nothing more than a corpse, he somehow still had his powers to turn things Golden. Those Mortals and Demigods that had helped Cronos and Gaia were now back once again, fighting for Tartarus. A few managed to join us through the Doors of Death, but everyone else emerged in Los Angeles. They've enslaved the Heroes, and without any commands, they are wreaking havoc on the city.

As for Midas, he was a good enough man to have beside me. Apart from the fact that when we met for the First time, he forgot about his curse when he shook my hand. I wasn't too happy, but thankfully there were no other incidents since then.

I slowly got up from my bed and walked over to the portable fountain in the corner of the tent. Iris wasn't too picky if we gave enough Drachmas.

The face of Toby Hitchkinson appeared in a rainbow, which didn't really suit him. A black scar ran down his face from his encounter with Daniel in the forest, and his eyes burned with the flames of Tartarus.

"What is it?" I asked, slightly irritated from waking up.

"Don't talk to me in that tone Nico-"

"NICHOLAS JACKSON IS DEAD! DO NOT DARE CALL ME BY THAT NAME AGAIN!" I roared at the image, and a flash of terror ran across his face.

"I'm sorry, General." He muttered. I composed myself.

"Tell me what you have to say."

"The Athena Girl, Sophia, and some other campers have just left the Camp on a quest."

"Good. Tell me you still have her hat."

"Yes. She won't be able to sneak around."

"Stay Hidden, Toby," I said, and the Iris Message faded.

Walking out of my tent, made my way to Lord Tartarus' tent, which was easily the biggest building around here.

"General!" He mused, "What brings you here?"

"I've gotten a message from our Spy at Camp Half-Blood."

"Yes, I know that Six Demigods have set out on a quest."

I faltered.

"But... How?"

"We have allies who see more than me, or a measly spy would ever be capable of. He's already told me about the Quest, and he's sent one of his soldiers to kill them. These soldiers, while fighting for me, still only answer to him."

"I didn't want to ask Toby, but how did they even get a quest?"

"Python is needed, so much so that the Demigods can get their prophecies back." He said.

"I understand, Lord."

"Pass the Command to break encampment, and send me every Cyclops that you can find over here.

"Yes, Lord!" I said, bowing.

"Dismissed."

I walked back outside, grabbing the Megaphone from the nearby Dracaena.

"DISMANTLE CAMP!" I yelled into it, and every monster jumped up, obeying my command. In no time, we were standing on an empty plain.

And so began our journey, throughout Europe.

Olympus has no idea about the war we're going to wage against them.

 ** _Sophia_**

I found myself lying on my back, blood trickling down my arm from a cut.

The others were also nearby, slowly getting back up.

The Side of the wagon now had a hole in it, where we had been blasted out of.

Whatever this thing was, I had a feeling we wouldn't be able to put up a fight against it.

"Who are you?" I asked, trying to delay the inevitable. The armored man jumped down onto the ground and looked at me.

"I am Attila. The Scourge of Rome."

"Wait. Attila the Hun?"

It smiled. Its eyes were as black as Chaos.

John threw his knife at the Monster, sticking him in the chest. Its smile didn't waver while, to the horror of everyone, it pulled out the knife and dropped it.

"Leave us," Susan shouted, the power of her voice washing over everyone.

A slight quiver ran through the legs of Attila, but he stayed in place.

"Your little magic won't help you, Daughter of love." He snarled.

"How about I try?" Desdemona said, stepping forward, and throwing her grenade. It exploded at the feet of the monster, glueing him to the ground.

"ATTACK!" I yelled, and my sword appeared in my hand.

I stabbed the beast through the chest, while John cut off a finger with a new knife, and Robert bashed him on the head. Susan was cheering on Desdemona, who was chanting something. Malcolm also charged at the monster, but quick as a flash, claws grew from its hand, and slashed at Malcolm, carving through the Sword, and cutting deep into his chest, John charged at the monster again, but he was just slapped to the side. Robert also fell to the ground, a bit of Malcolm's Celestial Bronze sword stuck in his thigh.

Once again, I struck at the chest of the Monster, but it glanced off the plates. Then I was lifting off of the ground, finding myself face to face with the monster.

"You fight well, but Mordred has already failed the Master, and I will not fall into the same mistake as he has. This ends here." It cackled.

"Don't Jinx it," Desdemona said. Susan was no longer behind her

"Wh-" A jagged-edged blade, my sword, pierced through the neck of the monster, who gurgled, dropped me and turned around. An Arrow struck its forehead, and I knew it was the end for it. With a soft sigh, it turned to black smoke. Nothing was left behind.

At that moment, I realized what had happened. Desdemona had masked Susan's presence with the Mist. Susan had grabbed the sword that I had dropped. Meanwhile, John had retrieved his bow.

I was impressed with our combined fighting skill, but then I remembered Malcolm and Robert. Malcolm's wounds were definitely much worse.

"John, Get over here!" I yelled, running to Malcolm's side.

John limped over and looked at the wound. He force-fed Malcolm some Ambrosia, before bandaging his chest tightly.

"I can't do anything else right now. Let's hope we can get over to Camp Jupiter before things get worse for him."

He then walked over to Robert, where he treated his wounds.

The rest of us had light wounds. Scrapes, cuts, stuff that could be handled without the help of John.

We were patched up after ten minutes.

"What the hell was that thing?" Susan asked.

"It said its name was Attila, but that's impossible. Attila the Hun has been dead for two millennia."

"Well, whatever it was, I don't want to meet something like that ever again," John said.

"Agreed," Desdemona added.

"Where do we go now?" Malcolm asked from the ground, he was relatively okay, though the ambrosia had probably kept him conscious.

"I noticed some houses over there." I pointed towards the Town.

"That's like, Eight Kilometers," John told me.

"We don't have any other choice."

"Damn it," Robert muttered, looking at his bandaged thigh.

"We'll make stretchers," John told him.

"Let's get ready, we still have a lot of walking to do," I shouted.

 **Everyone Groaned.**


	4. Fatherly Advice

**_Daniel_**

I woke up gasping down great gulps of air, and the first thing that came to my mind was that I wasn't on the ship anymore. I no longer felt the constant rolling of the ship, and the fires didn't burn around me.

Slowly getting up from the floor, I scanned my surroundings.

I was standing in the middle of a ruined building, built of black bricks.

Something moved, and I tried to whip my head towards it, but pain flared in my neck, making me gasp.

"Your body is once again drained of power."

It was my father. He was leaning against a marble column, inspecting a flower. It had black petals, and a Golden Yellow center.

"What?" I asked, my voice cracking.

"I heard your call for help. Zeus was there because I had called in a favor for you. You do not yet realize the power inside you, much less are you able to control it. The amount of energy you sent into the stormcloud, while necessary, was too much. The fact that you had nearly killed yourself eight days ago didn't help. "

"I had to save the crew of the ship."

"That is a noble gesture, one that I should have expected of you. But you have an important role in this war, one that we need you to fulfill. This time, only my protection saved you from death."

"Thank you," I muttered.

Ragnos cradled the flower.

"Ah, the Chaos lily. So beautiful." He mused.

"Where are we?" I asked.

"We're on the island of Sardinia, Italy."

"Why?"

"Don't you recognize it? It is a bit worse for wear right now, but it still looks pretty good for a building that's been abandoned for Centuries."

I looked around, and I realized that he was right.

"This- This is your Palace?"

"Albeit a smaller version, but yes. It was built to be the likeness of my palace."

"Who built this?"

"The Assassins of Chaos."

"What?" I was surprised.

"This was a part of their previous Fortress. Before the migration of the heart of the west."

"Why is it so desolate then?"

"Once the Heart of the West had moved to America, Europe, at least for demigods, became something very dangerous. Monsters relentlessly attacked these walls every day for many years. They broke through, and the Assassins had to leave Sardinia, leaving behind equipment and people."

"Why hasn't anyone come back for them?"

"A Creature of great strength was left here, it's mind blank after the River Lethe Cleared it. That does not mean there weren't attempts, but they all failed. Now, this place remains forgotten by nearly everyone. Only the High Priest knows of it, but he won't tell anyone. That way, no more bloodshed will come from it."

"This place is massive. That's what I don't understand. How has this entire Fortress, you, and Leit been left out of Myths and History Books?"

"Many Myths and Stories are lost over the centuries. Many more aren't written down, or if they were, we destroyed those accounts. That way, we managed to remain mostly anonymous. That doesn't mean that we don't appear in history. We're cloaked as an Army of Angels, or as the Army of Fallen soldiers."

"But Gods only have strength if they are prayed to."

"The gods have different forms. So do I. The Christian God, the Jewish Jahveh, the list goes on. These Religions, though they do not know it, all pray to me. Their prayers feed me."

"And this Leit. Who or what is it? How did he get power?"

Ragnos looked away from the lily, looking at me instead.

"Before the world was created, the infinite expanse of Chaos was divided between many Deities. They were in a constant state of war, myself included. Finally, it was me that came out on top, and I thought that the others were defeated, scattered into nothingness. I focused my attention on other things. My daughter Gaia, and the life that started to blossom on her. Leit however, had tricked me into thinking he was scattered like the others. Somehow, he rebuilt his body, his army, while keeping his own power at a bare minimum. Slowly, much to slow for me to notice, the prayers I received also gave him power. He brokered a pact with Tartarus to help him in his war efforts, and while Tartarus fights on Earth, Leit fights me here. Even now, the battle rages on."

"Do you have Chosen like Leit?"

"My Soldiers are as good as any Chosen he could throw at me. Jarion, my Second-in-Command, could easily best Four of them without tiring. They weren't created to oppose me though, rather to cause damages to humans. Ghengis Khan, Attila the Hun, Mordred, Timur the Great, Vlad the Impaler, Qin Shi Huang, Ivan the Terrible, Talaat Pasha. Just to name a few. They are better than most of Leit's army since they don't fear my power. Most of Leit's army only dare attack me in hordes of Millions."

"Hitler, Stalin?"

"No, though they did many unspeakable things, they were the Children of the Gods. Himmler, however, was chosen. He influenced Hitler, therefore causing suffering."

"What can we do to fight them?"

"Well, they're weakened by their arrogance, but still, they pose a massive threat to demigods. Celestial Bronze, Stygian Iron, and Imperial Gold hardly affect them. Only Mortal Wounds, like strikes to the neck or head, have any chance to kill them. Weapons made of Chaos Metal will do damage though."

"Good to know. Do you have any other good news?"

"Is that sarcasm?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

I shrugged.

"This is what you must do. Tartarus plans to attack Olympus once more, like once Chronos did, but his force is the greatest army of monsters the world has ever seen. The battle will be harder than the first battle of New York. The Olympians will need every ally they have."

"Good to know."

"Apart from that, Tartarus has started his march throughout Europe. Darkness will follow him, and he won't hesitate to get Mortals to do the dirty work. Two things will stop him from attacking as soon as he gets to Spain."

"Which is."

"One of them is you, more so the Assassins of Chaos. The other is Heracles. He continues to stand guard at the Straight of Gibraltar, and any Ship that Tartarus tries sending through there will be destroyed. He'll have to build and gather new ships from Countries like France and England."

"Do you have any specific plans for me?"

"Yes, actually. You and Harold, along with anyone else you need, will travel here, and collect everything that you can find here."

"You said a great monster guards this place."

"That is a problem you will have to solve. Without the weapons, you won't be able to stand a chance against Tartarus."

"I doubt we even have a chance to stand up to him."

"Do not doubt the power of the Olympians. You shall do this by the end of the month."

"I have a girlfriend! When can I see her?"

"Oh, I know all about Sophia. Her quest is as every bit dangerous as yours is, but do not worry. She is a daughter of Athena. With the two gifts I gave her, she'll do fine."

"I need to be there to defend her."

"You need to defend your people. The fate of Olympus rests on your shoulder, whether you like it, or not."

I clenched my fists but held back from spitting a curse into the face of my father.

He was right.

"I have one last bit of information to tell you before I leave. This is the last time we could meet face to face. To stop further Leituses from joining Tartarus, I have to concentrate on the battle."

He pulled off the Chaos Lilly, and crushed it in his hand. A purple mist floated up into the air, and Ragnos smiled.

"Goodbye Son." He disappeared, and I collapsed.

 ** _Sophia_**

"Can you take us to San Francisco?"

The Cabby laughed.

"I can take you anywhere you want to, but it'll cost you a lot."

"Money isn't a problem."

"I'm sure it isn't, Miss. Get in."

The Cab Driver opened the trunk remotely and we threw our stuff in, before getting into the Taxi. I sat down next to the Driver, while the others squeezed in the back.

Malcolm had woken up during our long and sweaty journey through the desert. The wound on his chest wasn't healing, and he had been groaning while we all marched with two stretchers between the remaining four of us.

As soon as everyone was as comfortably seated as possible, we set off. A few minutes into the journey the Cabby turned to me.

"So, you goin' to Camp Jupiter?"

"Oh fuck," I muttered, reaching for my sword, which wasn't strapped to my waist of course. John had drawn his dagger, holding it to the neck of the man.

"Put down that dagger, Boy." He said and John dropped it like it was burning hot.

"You're a Son of Aphrodite!" Susan said, surprised. John was looking at the man suspiciously, picking the knife back up.

"I prefer Venus."

"You're a Roman Demigod?" I asked.

"Yep."

"What are you doing driving a Taxi?"

"That's a long story."

I was still suspicious, partially because he didn't seem like he wanted to show us his tattoo, and partially because he was fidgeting a lot.

"How did you know we were going there?"

"Six Kids with large backpacks, where money isn't a problem. It's a pretty big giveaway. Not to mention one of you looks like he's on his death bed. You're probably from Camp Half-Blood, as your friend just said Aphrodite instead of Venus."

"Are we cool then?" I asked, glancing at John. His hand was hovering between the Sheath and the neck of the man.

"Yeah. You want to pay in Drachmas, Denarii or Dollars?"

"Dollars."

He stepped on the gas a bit, seeing Malcolm groan in pain. John picked up his knife and sheathed it, before leaning back.

"Things aren't going well there, last time I heard." He said to me.

"A few months ago, New Rome was destroyed by the Civil War."

"What Civil War?" He asked, glancing at me with concern on his face.

"The Augur had torn away from the Senate."

"The New Augur was always kind of an idiot the last I heard."

The conversation ended there, abruptly, which I didn't mind. The Son of Venus laid back in his seat.

I looked behind me at the back seat. It was a tight fit, but everyone was comfortably seated. Sort of.

Susan and John sat next to each other, both of them asleep. Robert was sitting next to John, and Malcolm was squeezed next to him. Desdemona sat in the lap of both boys. All three of them were also asleep.

Taking a final glance at John and Susan, I sighed. They had been dating for half a year now, and it was like they were made for each other. I only had a boyfriend for a few days, before he played a disappearing act on me. I felt angry, but I remembered it probably wasn't his fault. Whenever Gods got involved in something, the sanity of everyone involved was tested.

Turning to face forward once again, I looked at the road. My body was actively rebelling against me, wanting to continue the sleep session that was cut in half on the train. I gave in to its demands, and my eyes slowly closed. The hum of the Taxi engine was so monotonous, that it only made it easier to fall asleep.

"Hello!" Said a voice that was all too familiar.

Opening my eyes, I found myself standing in the middle of white emptiness.

"You sleeping well?" I whipped my head around and found myself standing face to face with Daniel.

"Whoa, careful. You might break your neck."

"What-Ho-"

"I have no idea where we are, and how you got here." He said, answering my question before I could even finish asking it.

The Anger I had repressed in the Cab suddenly flared up and Daniel saw that.

Before I could do anything, he leaned in and kissed me deeply, my anger melting instantly. It had felt like a lifetime ago that we had kissed, even though it had only been yesterday.

We pulled apart. For a few seconds, we just stared into each other's eyes.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

"Well, I'm currently unconscious on the deck of a burning ship-" He stopped, noticing the expressions on my face. "But nothing to worry about. I'm not in danger anymore. How about you?" He quickly finished.

"I'm sleeping in a cab, heading for San Francisco."

"That all?"

"Well, it's a long story."

"I can assure you, we have enough time to listen to yours and mine."

We sat down on the floor, which was also white. It was Warm to the touch.

I started telling my story first, from the inspection of the Athena Cabin to the Attack of the Train. When I talked about the creature, his eyes narrowed.

"What is it?" I asked.

"You're lucky you survived." He said.

"You know what that thing was?"

"If you ever encounter another one of them, do me a favor and run. No matter what." He looked into my eyes, and I could see the slight panic in his eyes.

"Sure, but why?"

"I wasn't so lucky." He muttered, pulling up his shirt. A bloody bandage was wrapped around his abdomen.

"What happened?"

"Finish your story first."

I quickly told him the rest, ending it with falling asleep in the cab.

"Before I start, try not to freak out too much."

"That only makes me want to freak out more," I said.

He cleared his throat, before starting his side of the story.

I listened through it in growing horror. First, he explained why his cabin was so messed up, continuing with how he woke up on the Endurance. Then came the attack of the Persians, and he described the fighting that ensued. Finally, he finished it by telling me how he had fainted on the deck of the Endurance, after talking with Zeus for a brief second.

He seemed to want to say more, but he stopped himself.

"And yeah, that's about it." He said.

"Gods of Olympus."

"Yeah. My day was interesting, to say the least."

"Thankfully it's over."

"I guess."

I cuddled him, enjoying the warmth of his body.

"Can't we stay like this for a few more hours?"

"I'd be happy to, but if I'm correct, you have to wake up right about now."

"Are you a Son of Hypnos?" I laughed.

He chuckled.

"I can feel you stirring." He said.

"You sure?" I frowned.

"Sadly, yes." He muttered.

"Return to me soon," I told him sadly, kissing him. "And be careful." I stood up.

"You too." He said.

I blinked, and I was gone from the white world.

"Good, you're awake!" Said the Cab Driver.

Slowly I sat up, rubbing my eyes.

"We there?"

"Look around you."

I did, and my eyes instantly locked onto two Armored Romans, standing guard beside the Entrance to Camp Jupiter.

John and Susan were already awake, and they were shaking the others to wake them up.

"How much do we owe you?"

"Three hundred dollars."

"Here you go," I said, handing him a thick wad of cash from my backpack.

He snorted, looking at the money. "You Greek Demigods always have money to spare when going on quests."

"Strawberries always bring profit," I smirked.

"Maybe I'll become a farmer after I finish this Taxi Gig." He laughed.

"Can you open the back?" I asked, getting out of the car and stretching.

"Sure thing." He said, clicking a button on his car keys.

The back popped up.

Slowly, the others also stepped out of the Taxi, stretching and groaning about the cramped space.

Malcolm was well enough to walk now, and the Ambrosia had healed Robert enough to let him walk with a limp.

Once we had gotten everything out of the boot, and Robert had closed it, I looked at the man.

"Thank you..." I said, waiting for the man to tell me his name.

"Oh sorry, so rude of me. It's Tristan." He said.

"We never introduced ourselves either. This is Robert and Malcolm, Desdemona's the Girl with the mouse, and then there's John and Susan." I said Pointing at each of them individually. "My name is Sophia."

He was looking at the tunnel leading to Camp Jupiter with a sort of Longing in his eyes.

"Do you mind if I come in with you? It's been a long time since I've seen New Rome.

"I don't see a problem if you do," I said.

"Cool." He stepped out of the car and locked it. Together we walked towards the small maintenance doorway that hid the Main road of New Rome, the Via Sacra. This time, I wasn't unprepared about New Rome. During my time on Chaos Isle, the free time I hadn't spent with Daniel, I spent reading about Rome.

"What business do you have here?" The woman said.

"Are we allowed to come in?"

"Nobody is to enter Camp Jupiter or New Rome. Praetor's Orders."

"I'm pretty sure once I speak with Gloria or Harrison, they'll let me in."

The Two Legionnaires looked at each other.

"How long have you been away from New Rome?" The Man asked. His voice was familiar, but I couldn't decide where from.

"A few years, why?"

"Both of them are dead. The New Praetor is Drake Viscount."

Tristan's face paled.

"What is your name?"

"Centurion Tristan Gillard."

Both legionaries glared at him.

"Do not use a rank you no longer possess, Gillard. We know about you. We definitely won't let someone in that's been kicked from the legion."

"Wait, you were kicked out of the legion? Why?" I asked, looking at him with an eyebrow raised.

"That's not important."

I huffed. The Man glanced at me, his eyes widening. To be fair, his eyes were also very unique and familiar. One was Brown, the Other Blood Red.

"Is that you, Sophia?"

"You know me?" I was surprised I was known.

He took off his helmet, and the sight of my Optio, Neal Stevens, Greeted me.

I couldn't help but laugh.

"How are you?"

"I'm good. I've got a New Rank, as you can see." He pointed to his chest. A Centurion's Badge glinted there.

"Wow."

"Yeah. Centurion of the First Legion, Third Century."

The Girl next to him cleared her throat.

"Oh yes, how rude of me. This here is Joan, my Optio."

"It's nice to meet you," I smiled.

"So what brings you back to New Rome?"

"It's another Quest. We need to talk to Viscount."

"In that case, good luck. He's probably inside the Senate Building or relaxing at a café near the Forum Romanum. Joan, open the door for them."

She saluted for me, took one last withering glance at Tristan, before opening the door.

"Thank you," I said, and the others also thanked them.

After we entered the Maintenance Tunnel, the door behind us closed, and the corridor lit up with bright lights, which was slightly better than the moody red light that shone here last time I came through. There was also an Absence of bodies, which I didn't mind.

It took a few minutes to get to the other end, where two other soldiers stood. They looked at us in surprise, but knowing well that there was a reason we were let through, they opened the door.

A sprawling city came into view which took my breath away, it was definitely bigger than the Old City. Some parts of it were still under construction, but seeing as how only a month ago this place was littered with bodies, and all that remained of the city were the charred husks of the buildings, this was certainly an improvement.

A recreation of the Colosseum and the Circus Maximus clearly rose above the city, along with the Senate Building, which was decorated with Purple drapery, A Golden eagle in the middle of each. That was our target.

"Come on guys and girls, let's go."

In the distance, I could see a massive wooden Fort, Stone Buildings dotted inside it. To our right rose Temple hill. All signs of the Augur had been cleared off of the Hill, and now it was once again serving its primary purpose as a Place to Worship the Gods.

The others were all at awe, especially Tristan, who was close to the brink of tears.

Very slowly, we made our way down the steps that connected the exit of the Maintenance Tunnel, to the well-designed surface of the Via Sacra. Slowly, we got closer and closer to the City Boundries.

"This place is amazing," John muttered.

"Yeah." Robert agreed. He was spinning a screwdriver in his hand absentmindedly.

Suddenly, something popped into existence in front of us, followed by great amounts of yellow smoke, startling Malcolm so badly, he fell backward, knocking over Desdemona in the process.

"Halt Right there!"

I was standing face to face with a statue a few centimeters taller than me. It was only carved from the Shoulders up.

"Terminus!" I said happily.

"Yes, I believe that is me." He sniffled. "Now tell me what business you have in New Rome, even though it was clearly stated at the entrance that no-one is permitted to enter."

"Well-"

"Shush!"

I closed my mouth.

"I should have you thrown out for disobeying rules, but I trust Centurion Stevens enough to not let in bandits." He huffed.

"We're here to speak with Praetor Viscount," I said.

"Are you writing this down, Lily?" Terminus said.

We looked around, confused. Nobody, apart from us, was around.

"Yes." Said the voice of a little girl. She jumped out from behind the statue, a clipboard in her hand.

"Okay... Umm..." I cleared my throat. "We've come from Camp Half-Blood-"

"GREEKS?!" Terminus Roared indignantly.

"Chill Terminus, we're currently not at war with them," Tristan said.

"And who are you?" He asked, turning towards Tristan.

"Tristan Gillard."

"Oh, it's you. You were exiled last time I remember. Ten years have already passed?" Terminus Grunted.

"Yes. I've been gone for twelve years."

"Terminus." I said impatiently, "We'd like to meet Viscount."

"Well, why would he want to speak to you of all people, Daughter of Athena? You Greeks disgust me. No sense of respect."

That comment hurt slightly, but I wouldn't let it show.

"Just give me the tray."

"Fine. You may enter. But cause any trouble, and you won't have time to feel sorry for it." He threatened. A Tray appeared in Lily's hand. She held it up for me.

I concentrated for a second, and my sword appeared in my hand. I placed it into the tray. John handed in his Bow, Quiver, and knives, and everyone else gave in their swords. Tristan took an imperial gold knife from his pocket and give that in.

We were about to step past Terminus, but he turned towards us.

"NO WEAPONS!" He screeched.

He was looking at the Screwdriver in Robert's hand

Robert raised an eyebrow and looked down at his screwdriver.

"What, this?"

"Get Rid of it!"

"It's my favorite screwdriver." He complained.

The screwdriver flew out of Robert's hand with a yellow poof of smoke.

Robert yelped in shock. Lily caught the screwdriver with the tray.

"No more complaining. Now go, before I change my mind."

I didn't think twice and started walking towards the forum, trying not to think about when I kicked the broken statue of Terminus in the nose.

With one last grunt, Terminus disappeared in a blinding flash, giving off yet more sulfurous yellow smoke.

 ** _Daniel_**

I slowly opened my eyes, slightly wishing that Sophia would still be in front of me. Instead, I was once again in a hospital ward, which I had only left a day ago. In the end, I would have to furnish it a bit, so I could enjoy my stays better.

"Oh good. You're awake." It was Harold. He was sitting by my bed, reading a magazine. His head was bandaged, but other than that, he looked fine.

"So we survived?"

"Well, most of us did." His expression turned sad.

"I'm sorry about your crew Harold."

"Don't be. They knew the consequences of sailing on a War Ship. They were good people though."

"How long was I out for?"

"Oh, just an hour or so. I've called together a meeting with the Leaders of the island. They're waiting for us. Are you good to stand?"

"I think so."

I got up slowly, though my legs felt like jelly.

"Great," Harold said, closing the magazine, and smiling.

My stuff was laid out on a table, and I quickly tied my sheaths onto my waist and put on my cloak.

"Jonathan is probably getting impatient. We should-"

"Sir!" I jumped back, stepping on Harold's foot. He said nothing, but he didn't look happy.

"Hello, Assassin," I said, composing myself. The Assassin in front of me wore a robe with Orange markings, but apart from that, her equipment was very much the same as mine. The hood was pulled up, covering her head so that I could only see her mouth.

"Daniel, this is June. She's the Daughter of Hades, and one the Captains of the Phoenix Squad."

"Nice to meet you," I said.

"Sir. It's good to meet you too, but I brought a message from Jonathan. He says to hurry up."

"We're going," Harold grumbled. "June, come with us."

She nodded, before trailing behind us as we walked outside. Many Assassins I had seen fighting on the Endurance now lay in Hospital beds, bandaged and sleeping.

Harold turned to me during our walk.

"What you did on the ship to save us was... an amazing feat of strength."

"Well, it nearly killed me, so I hope you liked it," I grunted. "I do have a question though, that I haven't been able to ask yet."

"Yes?"

"You are the son of Asclepius, the God of Healing. You've saved me from a mortal wound, and you shrug it off like it's nothing."

He was quiet for a good minute.

"The way I was born is something I rarely speak of. It brings up bad memories. Later. Please."

"Sorry. Of Course."

"However, I'll tell you this. I didn't want to become a doctor, I wanted to fight. One thing I realized too soon, was that Field Medic's were always needed, but nearly never available."

"So you became an Assassin, while also treating people in battle."

"Well, not treating, more... stabilizing."

"It's good to have someone like you around to save me when I fuck up," I smirked, waving at a Civilian to stop bowing.

Soon enough, we stood at the foot of the stairs, leading up to the Fortress. I sighed. The walk from the Hospital to here had been a tiring one. Five minutes and I had been breathing heavily. There was no way I'd be able to get up the Stairs of Death.

"Sir?" June asked.

I didn't know if she was speaking to me or Harold. Just to be sure, I looked back, and she was holding out her hand towards me.

"She's offering to take you up." Harold whispered.

"I mean, if it isn't too much of a problem, then sure."

She smiled, before turning to Harold.

"Harold, are you coming?"

"No, Sorry June. I've had enough of Shadow Travel for a lifetime." Harold shuddered. "I'll meet you guys up there."

She nodded, before grasping my hand.

"Okay, Sir." The Girl said. "This won't be a comfortabl _e_ ride. Everything will drop to about minus twenty, you'll feel pins and needles up and down your body, and it'll be dark as hell."

"Is there a chance to go by stairs?" I asked, not liking the description.

"You can get used to it quickly. We're in the shadow of the fortress, so we're good to go when you are."

I took a deep breath.

"Go."

The entire world went dark, cold and scary. Just like June had said.

It felt like an eternity, but finally, the light of the world returned, nearly blinding me. The world wouldn't stop spinning.

June pulled a bag from her belt and pushed it into my hands.

"First time always sucks." She said.

"Wha-" My to-be question was quickly answered when I felt my entire stomach turn inside out. I just had enough time to open the mouth of the bag, before the contents of my stomach poured out into it.

When it came to an end, I grabbed the bag and threw it in the nearest bin.

"Thanks," I told her.

"No problem. Harold will catch up, let's not keep Jonathan waiting."

We walked into the Grand Chamber of the Fortress, where Jonathan, Admiral Morgan, Mayor Flitter and the newly appointed General of the Chaos Army, Emilio Reyes stood. Harold had told me about Emilio on our walk here.

Jonathan saw me, and immediately came up, not even waiting for me to greet him.

"What in the name of Ragnos happened to you?" He snapped.

"Woah, calm down Jonathan," I said, a bit scared knowing fully well what Weapon he had stashed in his staff.

"I am CALM!" He shouted, "Now tell me what happened to you, and why you nearly died."

I told him shortly about the attack in my cabin and the Persian attack.

He didn't say anything for a long time, he was deep in thought.

"Gods of Olympus, you are tough to keep alive." He grunted. "Where's Harold?"

"He's coming up by stairs."

"Well until he arrives, let's talk through a few things quickly."

"Like?"

"Like what your next plan of attack will be. The Chosen have come out of hiding to hunt you. That is not a good sign."

"We're going to go to Sardinia."

"What?" Jonathan's eyes narrowed.

"We need everything that was left behind."

Jonathan's head turned red.

"What did I miss?" Harold asked, walking up the stairs.

 **As if on cue, Jonathan exploded.**


	5. A Secret Revealed

"Are you mad?!" Jonathan exclaimed, his fists clenching his staff until his knuckles were white.

"What's going on?" Harold asked. The others were also looking at him with raised eyebrows.

"It's... A Long Story."

"Well then tell us. We don't have all day." Admiral Morgan said.

Jonathan sighed, his grip slackening.

"We had a fortress before this..."

"What?" Harold asked.

"It was destroyed by monsters once the Heart of the West had traveled far from Europe. The Assassins at that time escaped but left behind thousands to their death. Many expeditions have set out there in the past, few ever returned with news. All of the survivors reported a Monster with a hundred arms and a face that was always changing."

"The Hekatonkheires."

"At least one of them." Jonathan nodded.

"But Briareus worked for Poseidon and his two brothers faded," Harold said.

"That's what we spread after the expeditions failed. We sent nobody else there, after a century of trying. We couldn't afford to lose anyone else on these expeditions."

"But why would a Hundred-Handed one attack us?" Harold asked.

"Its mind has been wiped by the River Lethe," I said.

"And how do you know that? How do you know about anything surrounding that place?" Jonathan asked.

"My father contacted me in my dream, told me about Sardinia, and that we must go there. He also told me about how Tartarus has started marching through Europe. His plans are to reach Spain, where he will launch his attack against Olympus. We have to delay him before he reaches his destination."

"How can we take over so many Soldiers. We hardly have anything to transport them with?"

"Admiral, how many people can our ships carry?" I asked, turning to Admiral Morgan.

I could see the Admiral quickly do the math.

"We could take about Nine-hundred, but if we want everyone to be well-rested, then Seven-Hundred is the max. Now that we have one ship less, that number goes down."

"That's not enough," I muttered.

"How many people do you need?" Jonathan asked.

"Every Soldier we have."

"Wha- That's absurd!" Jonathan spluttered.

"It is required for this mission, I'm afraid."

"Well, we can't transport that many soldiers, not in one go anyway," Harold said. "Why would we need so many people. I heard about the Monster, but sending everyone to fight him would be unwise."

"I don't plan on meeting him head-on, that would be suicide. Rather we build a Fortress in a strategic position and hold back the hordes of monsters."

"Our navy isn't able to support that," Harold told me.

"Also, the Chaos Army hasn't seen any real battle, apart from the Attack against Wilnos a Week ago. Our Equipment isn't up-to-date, and soldiers react differently to live combat where they don't have to defend their families." Emilio told me.

"That is true. How long would it take to build new ships?"

"The Blueprints were lost after building these seven ships I'm afraid. We could try building them from scratch, but It'd take a year or two." The Admiral said.

Jonathan looked down at his feet.

"What is it Jonathan, you have an idea?" I asked.

"Something like that." He muttered.

"Well then tell us. Anything you can say will help us."

"Oh, I'm sure it will. Admiral, I might be able to prove you wrong."

"What? We still have the blueprints?"

"Well, sort of. I believe the Secret of the Mountain must be revealed."

Total silence.

"Jonathan, are you sure? You're going against your Oath." Harold warned.

"Ragnos himself requested this of us, though he hasn't stated this clearly yet. What he asks of his son is enough evidence. His word overwrites my Oath, and the Oracle must realize that. I'm sorry for shouting at you, Grand Master. By talking about Sardinia, you've ripped open the Old Wounds, ones we've tried to heal for centuries."

"It's okay, I understand. But What is this Oracle you're talking about?"

"All in good time, Daniel."

"Very well, then Guide us."

He nodded, before turning to face everyone.

"Just follow me, and try not to anger anyone there."

He started walking towards one of the Alcoves, that looked like a place for a door, but since there was nothing in it, it was easy to feel like it was just decoration.

Jonathan pressed his hands against the stones, before muttering a few words. The stone glowed brightly, before disappearing, revealing a snowy Mountaintop behind it.

"Come." He stepped through and started trotting through the snow. First Admiral Morgan, then Harold, Mayor Flitter, and Emilio entered. I was last. Emilio's eyes were wide with excitement. Only a few days ago, he had been the Right hand of General Vitellius. Now he was privy to secrets he would never have thought he would get to see.

I was the last one to enter the doorway, and I was prepared for the temperature to drop rapidly. Stepping out onto the snow, I felt pleasantly surprised when I realized the Mountain air was lovely room temperature.

The others were already far away, so I picked up the pace, trying to walk fast through the ankle-deep snow.

 ** _Sophia_**

Walking down the Via Sacra gave us one of the best views of the rebuilt city. Even though only a few weeks ago it had been a pile of charred ruins, it was now once again populated with massive houses and shops. The smell of Hot Chocolate wafted over us, blown by the wind.

Tristan was in awe by the City, and he was falling behind.

"Shouldn't we wait for him?" John asked.

"He'll find his way to us. Let him enjoy this moment."

After a ten minute walk down the main street, we arrived at the massive expanse of the Forum. On the side we entered, shops and some classier houses lined the outer part of the square. The far side of the Forums was taken up by one massive marble building. The Curia.

Along the walls of the Senate Building massive purple drapes, with golden eagles drawn on them, hung. It was a magnificent building, that caused everyone to gasp at the sight of it.

"Terminus said Viscount is in there," I told them.

"Well then, what are we waiting for?" Susan asked.

We started walking towards the entrance of the Curia, only for a Man in a Purple cape to walk out, followed by half a dozen Soldiers.

"Well, that was faster than expected," I muttered, picking up the pace.

As we got closer, one of the Guards noticed us and whispered to everybody else. All six of them Stiffened and glanced at us.

Without warning, they turned around and ran at us. They were wearing plate armor, though no weapons.

John jumped in front of Susan, and the soldier collided with him, pinning him down. The rest of us soon found ourselves in the same position.

"Halt!" All struggling stopped.

"You aren't citizens of New Rome. How did you get in?" The Centurion amongst the guards asked, not loosening his grip on me.

"We-"

At that moment, Viscount arrived in my line of sight, standing over the soldier.

"Sabinus. Calm Down." He said, putting his hand on his shoulder.

"But-"

"This is Sophia. She's a friend."

With a grunting sound, Sabinus let me go, and the other legionaries followed suit.

"I'm sorry, Miss," Sabinus said.

"Don't worry about it, you're only doing your job." I smiled, brushing the dust off of my back, before looking at Viscount.

He looked amused, and the grin on his face was a nice change from the continuous frown I had seen throughout the Civil war.

"Hello, Sophia. Sorry about Sabinus and the other Boys. They take their job very seriously."

"It's okay. It's nice to see you too." I laughed.

"So, it's been a few weeks. What brings you here? And with so many new faces." He mentioned, looking at my friends.

"Oh. Yes." I said. Thinking about how to put it. "We've got a new quest."

"Wait, really?" Viscount raised an eyebrow. "What do you have to do this time, what do you need our help with, and how did you get the quest?"

"We don't know what happened, but our oracle finally spoke after A hundred and fifty years, and issued this quest. One of our campers has disappeared, they've been kidnapped by the Hunters of Artemis."

"And you want us to find them with you? And isn't a quest only supposed to contain three Demigods though?"

"Technically it should only be three, but we live in times that require change. As for what we ask from you, and what we want to do, we should discuss that somewhere more private."

"I understand," He muttered ready to walk away, before remembering something, "How rude of me." He said, turning towards my friends, and introducing himself with handshakes. He noticed that Malcolm and Robert were injured.

"What happened to you?"

"A small attack."

"Well, we have to treat you two. You're standing on your feet, but for how long we don't know. Sabinus. Salvius. Take them to the Hospital."

"Yes, Sir!" They said, before guiding them away from us.

"Now, let's go." He turned to walk away.

"We do have one last companion. He's a Roman Demigod, our Cabby that brought us here."

"What's his name?"

"Tri- Oh look, here he comes."

Tristan was weaving between the people at the Agora.

The second Viscount laid eyes on him, his face turned red from rage, and his fists clenched.

"What is... HE... Doing here?" He asked, looking at me.

Before I could explain, Tristan was before us, looking at Viscount, his eyes resting upon the Tattoo on his forearm.

His face paled, before looking into the Eyes of Viscount.

"Hello, my Friend." He said, slightly shaking.

"FRIEND? You are no friend of mine. How are you back? You were exiled."

"Ten Years go by in no time."

I saw Viscount calm down a bit.

"I don't agree with you being here, and do not think that our friendship will ever be repaired, but what the Senate decreed at that point in time, I will hold to it. You are free to walk around New Rome, but do not follow me, or I will show you what my Praetorians can do in a fight."

The Four remaining Soldiers grinned at that.

"Fine, but-"

"FUCK OFF. Before I change my mind and have you thrown out."

Tristan looked at me sadly, before leaving.

"I'm sorry Viscount... I didn't know there was a grudge between you two."

"No, you couldn't have. I doubt he would have ever told you. It's not your fault."

"What happened to you two?"

"Another time maybe. We have more important things to do than to tell tales."

We walked out of New Rome, heading down the road leading to what I could only assume was Camp Jupiter.

"And what's happened with New Rome this past month and a half?" I asked Viscount.

"Well, we've done a lot. Daniel's pet helped, along with one of these Assassins, June I think her name was. With the people we had, it took no time to rebuild. Many of the Veterans rejoined the Legion, so we're close to three thousand people strong. It's not full strength, but it's also better than nothing. The Eagles are returning slowly, and the Fauns are also trickling in, and since the Romans are no longer warring against each other, Lupa has returned to her duties of collecting and training New Demigods. As you have already probably seen, Terminus has also returned much to the joy of everyone." He grunted.

"I HEARD THAT!" And with a pop, Terminus appeared. We had just arrived at the Pomeranian Line.

Viscount sighed.

"Hello, Terminus. Please let us through, and give us back our weapons."

"Since you asked so nicely... _Praetor."_ Terminus said.

Lily arrived from seemingly nowhere, holding the tray with all of our weapons, and we quickly strapped them back on.

We walked away as Terminus popped out of existence.

"I see Terminus doesn't exactly like you."

"Nope, he doesn't," Viscount muttered.

"He's also slightly crazy," John said.

The four praetorians laughed.

"But to continue with the changes. As you can see, I now have twelve praetorians. It's just a safety precaution so that if the Daughter of Bia ever returns, I'll stand a chance without Daniel. I've also restored the Ancient Roman Legion structure since we have enough soldiers to effectively use it again. The Centurions that survived the Battle of Temple Hill got a place in the First Cohort, and most of the Surviving Optios were promoted to Centurion. You saw Stevens outside."

"Yeah, we did."

"Now, onto a bit about you, or your two previous companions. What happened to Daniel and Nico?"

"It's a long story. At least for Nico. He's... Turned into a traitor."

"What? He seemed so cooperative to fight against The Augur."

"And he's never shown any signs of being with Tartarus, which is what I don't understand about the situation."

"What about Daniel? Where is he?"

"He's with the Assassins of Chaos, with his own set of quests to do."

"And are you two just friends?" Viscount asked.

"What?" I looked at him.

"Nothing. Let's speed up, now shall we."

 ** _The General_**

" _ **HALT!"**_ Tartarus Roared, his voice bouncing off of the hills.

The massive army of Monsters slowed to a stop, and they started making Camp.

Tartarus was maybe half a kilometer behind me, being carried on his massive Litter by dozens of Cyclopes. Slowly, it was lowered onto the ground, and Tartarus stood up. Before he had only appeared small to others, but he didn't need to work in the shadows anymore. He was easily the biggest thing I could see, dominating every other monster or tree with his 17 meters of height.

I knew the first thing he wanted to do was to talk to me, so I started walking towards him. I noticed a few other Generals dotted in between the vast amounts of monsters.

Porphyrion was talking with many of his Giant brethren, Minus Alcyoneus, who wasn't resurrected with the other Giants, and Polybotes, who was helping Oceanus underwater.

As for Clytius, he was talking with one of the few Mortals we had resurrected. The woman in question was off doing her own thing, so she was communicating through a Dracaena.

"General," Tartarus said when I got to him.

"Yes, Lord?"

"I'm guessing you know I wish to talk to you. So you don't ask questions, I'll tell you what you need to know."

"And what would that be, Lord?"

"You're wondering about why we stopped. My plan isn't to march over with my entire army to what the Mortals call Spain. I'll let Nyx do that with her part of the army. Meanwhile, we'll march down the Apennine Peninsula that once belonged to the Romans, and sail to Sardinia. We'll find a powerful ally there, and we'll take away the last hope of the Gods."

"Where are we now?"

"This is as the Mortals call it, Montenegro. Very soon, once Nyx moves forward enough, we'll continue towards Italy. Until then, we sit here. We'll also need boats, so Italy will be the perfect place to build them."

"Won't Heracles cause a problem when we want to leave?"

"Who is this- Heracles?"

I gulped, sensing his growing anger "He Guards the straight of Gibraltar. The Gods placed him there. He'll surely not allow boats filled with monsters to pass. "

"Hah, a minor God." Tartarus said. "He won't cause too many problems, I can assure you, my General."

I nodded, before looking up at Tartarus. The Vortex which was his face made me feel dizzy after looking at it for too long, so I tried as little as possible to look at his face.

"Do you have anything you want me to do?" I asked.

"No. You may leave. I'll call for you if I do."

 ** _Sophia_**

"Why did you ask if Daniel and I were just friends?" I said, looking at Viscount.

He gulped, smiling sheepishly.

"I betted on you two with... Someone."

"You bet on us?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes..."

"We're dating," I muttered, and Viscount knew it was the truth.

"Damn it." He groaned.

I smirked. The walls surrounding Camp Jupiter were now very close. I heard everyone behind me gasp. They had been quiet for the entire walk, listening to the conversation me and Viscount had.

The gates were open, and we walked straight in.

"Let's go into the First Cohort Barracks. We can talk in there." He then looked at the four Praetorians. "You lads are dismissed."

They nodded and walked away. We continued towards the first stone building in front of us.

 ** _The Augur_**

The Streets of Seattle were silent, many mortal bodies spread on the asphalt, dead for many hours now. Most of them were soldiers or policemen. Those that had tried to stop us. The mist had contorted our Army into something more comprehensible for the mortal mind, but we were still hostile enough for them to fire upon us. Too bad for them.

Thousands of Persian Soldiers Stood in ranks behind me. We'd already announced ourselves, there was no other way we could've approached with such an army. Getting into that Complex would probably lead to a massacre, but thankfully the command was to destroy the Amazons, not Capture them.

I noticed Three Horsemen galloping back towards us, which was worrying since we had sent out ten originally. One of them had an arrow in his shoulder as they stopped in front of me.

"Report!" My Second in Command, Commander Tarik yelled.

"Right away." Said the man wearing an eagle-feather plumed helmet, marking him as the ranking officer. "We encountered an Amazon Scouting party. They know we're here. What we saw, that place is a deathtrap, we weren't even close to the building when we lost two to a Pit Trap. Approaching the building would be fatal. We'd be weakened down too much even before we could fight the hundreds of Amazons Warriors."

"We don't need to approach that place though. I've thought of that. Thank you. Get your wounds bandaged and join the army. Dismissed." I told them.

All three of them saluted before their horses trotted towards the back of the Army.

I motioned for the Commander to come closer to me. After spending a month with the Commander, I had realized he wasn't extremely fond of me, but he was loyal to his King and thus loyal to me. He was a Demigod son of some Persian God, something that was rarer for them than it was for a Roman or Greek Demigod.

"Yes, Sir?" He said, leaning close.

"Are the Troops ready for a fight?"

"Why would they need to fight."

"We bought two dozen Onagers with us for the exact purpose to burn this place to the ground. Just in case the Amazons decide to Charge, we need to be ready. Who knows what they'll do in desperation."

"I believe they are then."

"Very Good. Sound the Horn for the Onagers to Prime and Fire at will at the Amazons."

He saluted.

Soon the Horn signals went down the length of the Army, and from behind the many thousand Persians Two dozen Onagers, with deadly payloads rolled out.

Two minutes passed. The Amazons had most probably seen our weapons, but no reactions were coming from their Base. with a _thunk_ sound, Twenty-Four Glowing balls of Imperial Gold flew through the air. The screams of the Amazons rang out. Too late, they charged outside, straight towards us. A few fell into the traps they had set for us.

Then the balls of death landed, incinerating everything that had charged outside.

The Battle was over before it could even start.

 ** _Daniel_**

I caught up with them quickly, even though the snow was ankle-deep.

"Jonathan, how is it so warm, up here?" Harold asked.

"The power of Ragnos is so powerful at this place that it is able to warm us."

We kept walking until we came to a dead-end, a sheer cliff face towered above us for hundreds of meters.

The High Priest pressed his hand against the cliffside, and just like the alcove, a door appeared where his hand touched the wall.

We all entered, and we found ourselves in a short corridor carved from rock, at the end was a glass wall. The only thing I could see through it was a massive lit cavern. The corridor branched into multiple directions.

Before any of us could say anything, multiple men emerged from the shadows and from secret compartments. We were soon surrounded by them, a strange, curved sword pointed towards us. They wore Special looking robes with purple flowers on its chest.

"Entering the Premise of the Mountain of Ragnos is punishable by death." Said a man wearing the same Robe but the Purple Flower design on his chest had an echelon above it.

He then noticed Jonathan.

"High Priest. What are you doing here?"

"Ragnos has spoken to us. It is time."

"Are you sure? The Secret of the Mountain can only be revealed when the True Grand Master arrives."

"It is him," Jonathan said, pointing at me.

Their eyes widened, and they sheathed their weapons, falling to their knees in the process.

"I'm sorry Grand Master. I-I-"

"Don't worry about it. What is this place?"

"It's better if we let the Oracle talk with you about it."

"Oracle?"

"Everything will be explained, Daniel," Jonathan told me.

"What is your name?" I asked the Soldier.

"My name is Commander Philip Trion. I'll escort you to the Oracle. The rest of you will be escorted by Jonathan and two of my brothers."

Everyone nodded.

"Grand Master, Follow me." He said, walking down one of the side corridors.

Not a minute later it opened up into a smaller chamber with Five chairs made of stone arranged in a half-circle on the far end of the room. On the largest chair sat a man, who looked old enough to crumble to dust from the smallest puff of wind.

"Trion, who is this boy?"

"Oracle, Jonathan has brought him here, saying it is time. He is the Chosen One."

In the blink of an eye, the Oracle stood in front of me.

"Wha-How did-"

He touched my forehead.

Where his finger touched me, it tingled.

I took a closer look at his face and noticed that his veins were bulging, and they had a black tint to it. Probably his most important feature was that his eyes were pure black.

"It is the Chosen One. Why did I not get a message from Ragnos?" He said, more to himself than anything else. "Thank you, Commander, Dismissed."

Trion bowed and walked outside.

"You may ask questions now."

"Who are you, what is this place, and how did you appear before me?" I asked, slightly panicking from the sight of the old man.

"Woah, calm down there." He Chuckled. "To start things off, I am the Oracle of Ragnos. You may call me Kronin."

"Hello, Kronin," I said.

"I've been the Oracle of your father ever since the start of Humanity."

"What..." I said, at loss for words. "How old are you then?"

"You tend to stop counting after the first thousand. I do not know. As you maybe see from my body, it is held together only by the Power of Ragnos. I cannot move with my legs, I can only phase around, similar to Shadow Travelling. For now, this is enough information about me. We'll have time to talk later. This place... Where should I start? When the Assassin's came here, this cavern already existed. Ragnos has some insight on fate itself, as it's as old a force of nature as he himself is. He didn't want the Assassin's of Chaos to be a Military Superpower until it was absolutely needed, so instead of giving us new Ships, he kept it a secret until it was needed."

"Wow."

"Wow indeed. Jonathan only knows a portion of what's in this Cavern, for the biggest secret I have kept only to myself. Let me show you."

He teleported forward a few meters and placed his hand against the wall, which disappeared. Behind the wall was a small room with a glass wall pointing inwards to a smaller cavern.

I walked forward until I stood against the Glass. Kronin appeared next to me.

"What do you think?" He asked, smiling.

 **"It's... Massive."**


	6. The Titaness

**_Sophia_**

"Sophia!" Mary exclaimed, running up to hug me.

"Mary! How are you?" I said, returning the gesture.

"I'm fine. Who are your friends?"

"Oh yes, this is John, Susan, and Desdemona," I said, pointing at them one by one.

By then the entire barracks was looking at us, which was making me uncomfortable.

Mary looked at Viscount, who was patiently waiting for us to stop.

"Yes, Praetor?"

"Where is Julius?"

"In the Centurion's Quarters, where else?" She grinned.

"Very good. Thank you, Centurion, Dismissed."

She saluted, before looking at me. "We'll talk later. We can catch up with each other."

"Seems like a good idea, but maybe for a later date," I said as Viscount walked away without saying a word. He subtly pushed a bag of Denarii into Mary's hands, who didn't seem to understand at first what it was.

It took me a short second to figure out why.

"You two bet on us," I said, tutting.

"Meh, I've never been good with love," Viscount smirked.

"And why do we need Julius?"

"He'll most probably be the one who I'll send with you. You'll need as many people as I can give you."

We walked up multiple sets of stairs, during which we got glimpses of the contents of each floor. The first few were crammed full of Bunk beds. Then there was a kitchen and Break room, with a plasma TV on the wall. The First Cohort sure knew how to live. The Topmost floor was one long corridor with Small Rooms side by side next to each other. Each one had a Number above the doors, and Name Plaques on them. The very first one we came up to was much more different than the rest. It had a large Roman One above the door, and A Golden Eagle was Painted on the Doors.

It took some time, but I was finally able to read what the Plaques had on them. There were five in total:

 _Centurion Julius Mrowski, Primus Pilus._

 _Optio Horatius Mariner._

 _Signifer Septia Lawrence_

 _Cornicen Cassius Downer_

 _Tesserarius Vitus Bennett_

"What are all these Ranks?" I asked Viscount, who was about ready to knock.

"Oh. Yeah, that could be new to you. I'm guessing Centurion and Optio already say something. The Signifer is the Century Standard-bearer, the Cornicen is the Hornblower and the Tesserarius is the Guard Duty Organizer."

"That's Complex."

"Yeah, but it's pretty effective, believe me."

I wasn't going to doubt him after all the Roman Empire was one of the longest surviving Empires in history, if not the longest ever.

He knocked on the door, which was opened after a few minutes. The eyes of Horatius looked us over, slightly surprised that the Praetor and four greek demigods had decided to visit.

"Optio Horatius!"

"Yes, Sir?"

"Is your Centurion here?"

"Umm, Actually-"

"Who is it, Horatius?" Yelled a rough voice from inside the room.

"Sir, you should come and see this for yourself."

I could hear the voice, most probably the Centurion's, start to grumble, saying one or two very interesting phrases concerning Legionaries of the First Cohort.

"What have the Group of bellends done ag-" He stopped when he noticed us standing in the doorway. "Praetor Viscount, what a lovely surprise!"

"Centurion, get your stuff together and meet us in the Break Room, we have something to discuss."

"Yes, Sir!" He saluted, before grabbing his sword and helmet. "I'm good to go."

"Very well," Viscount said, turning around and walking away. Centurion Julius stepped into the now growing line of people trailing behind Viscount, walking beside me. He gave one angry look towards Horatius, who quickly closed the door.

"Miss Whitefield, I believe?" He said, looking at me.

"Yes."

"You and that weird friend of yours did a nice job of training the lads. You have my thanks for that."

"Well, no problem. You would have done the same for us."

He grunted, "So what brings you here?"

"You'll see."

We arrived in the main room and crowded around the table. Two Soldiers were playing a game of chess, while six more were watching a football match on the TV. Three others sat at the table, looking at us with surprise as we crowded around where they were having a snack.

"Please leave," Viscount said.

They slowly picked themselves up from the table.

"Faster you Twits!" Julius yelled, and they scrambled away.

"Thank you, Centurion," Viscount said Ironically, looking at Julius.

Julius bobbed his head.

"Okay, now that we're in a much calmer place-" I started.

One of the Teams scored a Touchdown, and the Break room filled with the roars and jubilant laughs of the soldiers, while a small group of them groaned.

Julius was about to cuss them out, but Viscount held up a hand.

He cleared his throat loudly and looked at the soldiers. They understood the unspoken command and stopped all cheering.

"As you were saying, Sophia."

"Very Well. Centurion Julius, let me bring you up to date. We've been sent on a quest for one of our Missing Camper. She was kidnapped by the Hunters of Artemis, who we've lost connection with ever since the war with the Giants."

"Then what's your plan? We can't search the entirety of America for one Demigod." Julius huffed.

"Which is why we have to find their allies. The Amazons."

Viscount choked on the water he was sipping, the Soldiers watching the Football game all looked at us, and Julius frowned.

"What?" Viscount muttered, still regaining his ability to speak.

"I knew we'd get this reaction," John whispered. Desdemona elbowed him.

"Thank you," I told Desdemona.

"What are you thinking, woman?" Julius asked.

"You're allied with the Amazons, no?"

"We were, a century ago. But since then Reyna has died, and so has Hylla Two-Kill. That way there was nothing keeping us together, so they just distanced themselves from us. The few people we sent to them returned without ears and a nose."

"So it's not all good between you."

"Well, you could say that," Julius grunted.

"You must still know where their Headquarters is, no?"

"Of course. Seattle. Do you really wish to go?"

"Yes," I said.

"No..." John muttered. This time it was Susan who elbowed him.

"We can't give you a certain chance for survival, but if you really wish to go, and you need help, take the First Cohort's First Century."

"What?" Julius looked at Viscount. "I didn't sign up to this. Not yet."

"It's the least we can do for them. They helped us out in the Civil War." Viscount told Julius.

He stayed silent for a bit.

"Fine. The boys and I will go."

"Good. Do we have anything else to discuss?"

"Actually, we do Praetor," Julius said.

"What happened?"

"While you were at the Senate meeting, one of the Eagles returned with Grim news. A large group of about Two-Thousand Hostile-looking soldiers has marched straight past us towards Seattle."

"That can't be enough for an assault against the Amazons."

"They carry more supplies than they could possibly need, so my guess is their reinforcements."

"That's not good news. You guys have to hurry in that case."

"Another thing. The Eagles described a man that sounds similar to Dravin. The Augur's Bodyguard."

"You're saying the Augur is behind this?"

"Yes."

"That's your mission then. If you see that Bastard, kill him."

Julius nodded.

"Does that news change anything for you, Sophia?"

"Not really. The Amazons have Distribution Centers all over the world, if we find survivors, we can help them, and they'll help us."

"Then it's good. You guys stock up on Ambrosia, Nectar, Unicorn Draught, Arrows, Weapons, whatever you need. Julius, get your Century together."

"Tim! Get your ass over here!" He yelled over to the Demigods crowded around the TV.

It was one of the Legionaries who we had sent away from the table.

"Yes, sir?" He asked, jogging over.

"Get the Boys ready, we're going to move out as soon as possible."

"At once!" And he ran off.

"Now while he does that, I want to learn a bit more about you folks, if that's okay with you Praetor."

"Fine by me."

"Now Miss, I know some things about you, but the others I haven't even seen yet. My name is Centurion Julius Mrowski, Centurion of the First Cohort's First Century. We are the Twelfth legion Fulminata's Pride and joy."

One by one, my companions introduced themselves. Julius seemed interested in Desdemona, saying that he had never before seen a Daughter of Hecate.

In no time, Tim the Legionnaire returned.

"Sir, everyone is getting packed. All I need is a Signed Document from the Praetor that we can grab stuff from the Quartermaster."

"Yes, thanks for reminding me," Viscount said.

He quickly scribbled down a message, before signing it, and handing it to the Soldier.

Tim's eyes widened.

"A Scorpion Ballista, and Grenades?"

"You need the protection, now go."

Tim once again jogged away, and I raised an eyebrow towards Viscount.

"We've got a nice stockpile of equipment again. Most of it salvaged from the Augur's fort. It could come in handy, you never know."

"Sir, I'm afraid there's just one problem." Julius Interrupted.

"What is it?"

"The Senate won't exactly be pleased with this decision."

His eyebrows knitted with frustration.

"The Senate will have to close it's mouth then. We are on the brink of war with Tartarus, if not already a part of it. The Gods need us, and we will do whatever it takes to help in the Quests provided by them. If the Senate does not understand that, then they can talk to me."

I was actually surprised that Viscount was willing to stand up to the Senate like that.

"Up to you, Sir." Julius shrugged.

"Sophia, don't we have anything else to tell them? The prophecy did mention something quite important." John whispered in my ear.

I slapped my forehead. John was right! It had totally gone out of my head. The last verse of the prophecy.

"What did you forget to tell us, Sophia?" Viscount asked.

"You haven't gotten the prophecy then?"

"Not that I know of. We don't have an Augur as you may remember."

"There's a verse at the very end that goes like this. _Shore up defenses, for war draws close/ And Graves will lie in Tiny rows/ At the foot of Olympus it will decide/ If the Gods will survive._ "

"That doesn't sound too good."

"I'm sure now that Tartarus will try and attack Olympus once again like Kronos tried to do. Only now he has an army of which we have never seen the likes of before."

"Oh."

"My Mother Told Me, the last time I met her in a dream, that we need to gather Allies. I'm certain this is why. We'll need every last Demigod for the final battle that'll take place in New York."

"And You're suggesting we send the Entire legion there?"

"No, that wouldn't be enough. We'll need every person capable of putting up a fight in the Battle against Tartarus. We cannot give him the chance to strike us somewhere where it hurts. Leaving behind the Families in Rome wouldn't be safe. I know fully well that Lupa Comes to defend the Borders of Rome during times of need, but I fear even the Wolf Goddess wouldn't stand a chance against his army."

"You're saying we've got to move over to New York?"

"Bring Everything. Long Island is a Big Place. We can make space for those that cannot fight. The Athena Parthenos is Very Much capable of defending against an Onslaught should it come to that."

"Now that's something we need to talk in detail about with the Senate. You are right though. It would be unwise to leave people undefended here, while we wage a war. But if we were to go there, what could we do about the mortals?"

"I'm not sure yet, but we don't need to come up with every idea now. First, let us return from our quest, and I hope to the Gods we'll have more knowledge of what to do then."

Viscount nodded slowly.

"I think you should leave right now. Time is running out as we speak. Good luck, and may Fortuna be on your side."

We said our goodbyes, before following Julius outside.

 _ **Daniel**_

"You like the view?" Kronin asked.

"How..."

"For the past Centuries, we've been building this beauty, among many other things. We call it, _The Titaness._ "

In the cavern, before me, stood a massive ship, its size easily ten times larger than the Frigates I had seen.

"You won't get to know it from this far, come let's go down."

He touched my shoulder, and before I could even react we were standing in front of the beast of a ship.

The sight of the ship was awe-inspiring, and I was out of things to say. 'Woah' Just couldn't cut it.

"Master Engineer!" Kronin called his voice bouncing off of the Cavern walls.

Very soon a man came running from a side tunnel, coming to stand in front of us. He looked mid-thirties, with a scruffy beard. His eyes were grey, just like Sophia's.

"Yes, Sorry, I was tending to I-" He noticed me. "Hello there." He said, stretching his hand out for me to grasp.

"Hello." I managed to stutter. "I am Grand Master Daniel Greenfield. You built this ship?"

"Not by myself, but yes."

"What's your name?"

"It's-"

"Uncle!" Came a voice from behind the Engineer, and out came running a blond boy from the same corridor, who was around my age, holding a circuit board.

"What is it Perdix?"

"I've finally figured out what was causing the Malfunction- Oh You're in the middle of something." He stopped. "It's been long since we've seen anyone new."

"So you wanted to tell me your name..." I said.

"Oh yes. It's Daedalus."

I couldn't help but laugh, looking at Kronin, then the Engineer to see if they were playing a prank on me.

Neither of them said anything.

"Wait, you're serious?"

"Very much so."

"You're _the_ Daedalus?"

"Last time I checked, yes."

"But you're dead. You should be dead."

"I was dead for a few years, yes, but I'm very much alive now."

"So you're over two thousand years old?"

"Yes." Daedalus looked at me, confused.

This was just too much for me.

"How?" I asked, looking him in the eyes.

Daedalus looked pointedly at Kronin, who turned to me.

"Daedalus survived nearly Two millennia by building himself bodies much better than his mortal one. He made himself into an Automaton. Then, to hide from the gods, he created a home inside the Labyrinth-"

"There's still a Labyrinth?" I asked, even more, surprised.

"Hush, child, we'll get to that later."

I closed my mouth.

"During the Second Titan War, the Labyrinth was used to attack Camp Half-Blood, but after the attack got repelled, Daedalus sacrificed himself to save the Half-Bloods. You see the Labyrinth was connected to his Life-Source, so if he died, the labyrinth would also collapse. He was sent to the Underworld, where he reunited with his son Icarus, and his Nephew Perdix."

"But how did he return?"

"When the War with the Giants started, Thanatos was captured and chained, allowing spirits to return to the living world. Gaia used this to her advantage to bring back Mortals as the Enemies of the Gods. I got some orders from Ragnos, which lead us to bring back Daedalus, along with his Son and Nephew, here, where he could work for us."

"Interesting."

"There was just one problem with everything," Daedalus said.

"Which was?"

"Since my original Workshop was burned down, and the Labyrinth collapsed, I don't have every design I need for my job to be complete. The last remaining Laptop I had, containing great amounts of my Data, I gave to Annabeth Chase, but it got lost in Rome, leading me to have to improvise."

"Well, you improvised nicely," I said, looking at the gigantic hull of the Titaness.

"It took a long time, but yes, I can agree with you."

"Daedalus, can you show him around the Ship?"

"Of course! I've been waiting for this for a long time! Come!"

He pressed something on his arm, and the Hull opened up, letting down a ramp we could use to climb into the hull. The ramp was wide enough for a truck to drive up it, sideways. I couldn't even start to guess why it had to be so big. We started walking up it, Kronin stayed behind. Daedalus's nephew, Perdix, was gone.

"We're entering the Cargo Hold. It's reinforced up to the point where a one-ton ball of Imperial Gold ball couldn't make a dent in it."

"Are you serious?" I said.

"Yes. The Armour is a combination of Celestial Bronze, Stygian Iron, and Magic. I think after Two tons of Imperial Gold, it broke apart, so it's pretty safe."

"How much can we store in here?"

"Well, it can carry many tons of supplies, while also carrying Cannonballs, Spare Weaponry, Missiles and Ammunition. It also has quite a bit of space for my New Contraptions, but we can go over those later."

"The Engine for this ship must be massive. It has to be, otherwise, it'd just die under the weight of this beast. Am I right?"

"Not necessarily. I've refined the Complicated Engines of the Smaller Frigates, making the new version much more stronger and more efficient. It's that way." He said, pointing left. The Cargo bay was in itself already big enough to make my knees weak.

It was currently empty, but I could see the thing in use, stacked to the brim with explosives.

We turned towards the Engine room, and it took me by surprise that the room was very small. It was much smaller then what I had seen in the Endurance.

"The Engine uses a mixture I just call High-Energy Fuel. I mixed together some of the most powerful things in the Mythological world to create it. The Waters of the Styx and Phlegethon, Imperial Gold Dust, Greek Fire and some magic dust from the Sun Chariot."

"No more wind spirits?"

"It still needs them, but only if you wish to go fast."

"Isn't it hard to make the Fuel?"

"It is, but you don't need a lot for it. Half a liter is enough for a few months."

"How much do we have?"

"Ten Tons."

I choked on my spittle.

"You don't know how much you can do in A Century and a half if you don't need to sleep. I also have Perdix, who's been a massive help to me. Icarus too."

"Still, Ten Tons."

"It's enough to break the Island into Atoms. The blast would carry all the way to Olympus, scorching the top of the Mountain. We can also use it for weapons, which is why we have so much of it."

I was starting to feel some serious respect for Daedalus, not just because he had built the biggest bomb ever to be created.

"Now let's go, we've still got other things to see."

We walked back into the Cargo Bay, from where we went up a set of big stairs. We arrived at the Command Center.

In the center of the room was a metal pillar, glass surrounding the middle of it. Inside the Pillar, I could see a strange Ball with symbols all around it. Dozens of Wires ran from it into the pillar.

"What is that?"

"It's the Central Archimedes Sphere, which I was able to take from Bunker Nine after the Death of Leo Valdez. It's the Brain of the Ship, and it was the hardest thing to incorporate into the design."

"Wasn't Bunker Nine Closed from the outside."

"Well, yes. Leo Valdez Closed it off from everyone else so that his designs and other works wouldn't get into anyone else's hands. It took a long time for me to figure out the password, but I was able to do it. I sneaked in, took the Sphere, before locking the door again. Leo was right to close that door. The amount of stuff in there is scary, and it would cause panic at camp. Though with the War drawing ever closer, it'll probably be wise to open is soon enough."

I wondered what was in there, but didn't ask. Whatever it had been was enough to make Daedalus close the doors back.

"Now then, the Command Center..."

"Go on."

"The entire ship can be controlled from here, but it is no longer directly connected with the top deck, which is a massive flaw in the old designs. The way up to the Top Deck is now achieved differently, and the Actual Command Center is heavily armored. The Crew Required to Control this is around a hundred. The Sphere helps with most things."

"Cool."

"Now I want to quickly talk about the Cabins and such, so we don't have to go down there. There are enough beds for the Crew plus a few hundred other Soldiers, but other than that we have a mess hall, Captain's Quarters, Council Room, Kitchen, Workshop, Infirmary. The Underside of the Ship can be changed with the press of a button, so that massive Cannons appear in the bottom, allowing us to bombard the ground. We have Six decks of cannons, each deck containing A hundred and Twenty-Six Celestial Bronze Cannons."

"How are they fired?"

"It's automated! Much easier that way."

"True."

"There's a lift that lets us go upstairs, that's where the tour will end."

"Let's go then."

"Very well."

We went down the stairs, once again back at the cargo hold. I now noticed two sets of stairs, either side of me, leading down to where Daedalus had just described. We walked down them, finding ourselves standing at the end of a corridor. Instead of exploring the corridor, Daedalus immediately turned right, walking into a small indentation in the wall.

He waved for me to come too.

I stepped inside, and after he pressed a button, we started going upwards. In a few seconds, we arrived at our destination. The top deck.

We had emerged on the deck straight through the floor.

"This is the place I took the most time to make. Just in case the Fuel runs out, you still have a mast with sails. They can be retracted if the need arises. The Railings, while they looked normal, are actually capable of turning into stakes, able to repel any boarding attempt. There's a figurehead, depicting Selene, the Moon Titan. Under the Deck, a vast array of weaponry can be found, capable of destroying a target in seconds. They aren't currently loaded, for safety reasons but once you're ready to sail out, they will be. To name a few, we have Naval Cannons, Rockets and so on. Now, what have I forgotten?"

I let him think for a few seconds.

"Oh yes! The Ship as an Automatic Defense Protocol, which makes dozens of Automatons appear from the walls, and from the floor, programmed to guard certain entry points. They're disabled due to a malfunction in their Motherboards which I installed, but I'm guessing that's what Perdix had tried to tell me when he ran out. Other than that, the side of the ship can turn into a porcupine when needed."

"Wow. This ship is-is-"

"Magnificent? All-Powerful?"

"Yes. But I do have one problem."

Daedalus Frowned.

"No, No. I didn't mean it like that. This ship is amazing and all, Thank you for your hard work, but I don't see how this one ship is capable of transporting all our soldiers at once."

He kept on frowning for a second longer, before starting to laugh.

"You shouldn't worry about that. As I said, I had a lot of time on my hands. And I started off by building Automatons to work with me. They helped a lot."

He pressed something else on his arm, and the Whirring of an engine filled the cavern, I turned around, and saw the Cavern Walls slowly open up.

"By the Gods of Olympus," I said, much to Daedalus's Amusement.

Behind the walls was what we needed.

"This is the New Armada of the Assassin's of Chaos." Daedalus said, gesturing with his hands, "Along with a few other stuff of notice."

Forty, I repeat, Forty Ships, just like Frigates I had seen, but Brand New and Upgraded in many ways, stood on stilts in the Cavern.

As more of the walls pulled away, I saw Hundreds of Automatons in tidy rows, along with Smaller Ships in the Background, and many Machines that I couldn't even begin to Fathom how they worked.

Rows and Rows of Nice-looking Armour and Weaponry were stacked up against each other.

Finally, I noticed Jonathan, Harold, and the Others, gawking at the Titaness from in between the Rows of Ships.

I laughed, a sound of pure excitement.

 **"PEOPLE!"**

Everybody's Head snapped towards my voice, magnified by the echo of the Cavern.

 **"THE WAR IS ALREADY WON!"**


	7. The Power of Chaos

_**The Augur**_

The burnt corpses of the Amazons lay at my feet. Foolish. They could have surrendered, but they refused. Too late now.

They had tried charging at us, once they realized what we were going to do, but they were too late. The Amazon Warriors got burned to crisps, their Warehouse destroyed in a massive explosion. For the past half an hour now, the Persians have been going through the rubble, looking for Corpses, especially that of the Queen's.

Commander Tarik was feeding the Simurgh, a massive winged creature from Persian Mythology. I would need it soon, and the last thing I wanted to happen was it turning on me for food.

Speaking of the Reinforcements, they probably passed the Roman Camp a few hours ago. I wasn't too afraid for their safety. So far what I saw of the Persians was good. They were well trained and very resilient. They also had massive amounts of money backing them, so traveling wouldn't be a problem. I thought that we'd be marching to Seattle, but after some talk with the Soldiers, they told me that they had cars and trucks for that.

It is not pleasing, to say the least, that I am not told important information like this, but complaining would only make things worse, so shutting my mouth and doing what Tartarus wants is my only option.

"Commander Tarik?"

"Yes, Sir?"

"Is the creature ready?"

"Yes. Where do you plan on going?"

"That is none of your business."

"Very Well. Your Simurgh, Sir."

I got on, and the Bird kicked off of the ground, leaving behind a frowning Commander Tarik, and more than five thousand Persian Troops, erecting a Camp and searching the rubble.

The Creature was trained to go wherever you told it to go, you just had to tell it.

" _Quebec,_ " I whispered into its ear. The Creature turned slightly east. It was going to be a few hours until I arrived, so I would take that time to sleep.

 _ **Sophia**_

Very soon, I was in a Black SUV, Julius behind the wheel, and Horatius sitting next to him. I was sitting beside Susan and Robert. Robert had decided to come with us, his leg feeling much better. Viscount Waved a goodbye from outside, and we waved back. Next to him stood Malcolm, his side bandaged, and a pretty Daughter of Apollo standing next to him, supporting him.

He could have been off worse.

We drove a bit on dirt tracks until we reached a tunnel. The tunnel connected into the Caldecott Tunnel directly, and very soon we were on the highway towards Seattle. Behind us, multiple Mini-Buses trailed. They were carrying Demigods of the First Cohort's First Century. One Hundred and Fifty Soldiers.

"Guys it'll be about Twelve Hours before we arrive. Rest a little." Julius said.

"We had plenty of rest on the Train and during our Taxi Ride."

"Up to you then. Just saying."

We entered another tunnel, and everything went dark.

"Hey, guys." Came a voice I wasn't expecting to hear.

We all jumped, Susan Screamed, and Julius Swerved out of surprise. The Concerned voices of the Mini-Bus Drivers came through the Radio.

"It's fine, just jumped a bit." He said into the Microphone. "As for that Voice, I know whose it is. Only one person is able to creep up on us while we're speeding through a tunnel. Ambassador?"

"Rebecca is good enough Centurion," Rebecca said.

"As is Julius for me."

"Rebecca! What are you doing here?"

"I was a Guest at the Amazon Headquarters half an hour ago. It took me long enough to find you. Let me tell you what I've got."

"Fine. Just please don't appear in our car like that again."

"Anyway, I bring sad news. The enemy has destroyed the Amazon Headquarters, without taking any serious casualties."

"Shit!" Julius said, smacking the wheel. "What's our new plan then?"

"I was able to Shadow Travel out of there with the Queen and a few of her Guards. They are hiding in a small bunker not far from the city, along with the Perimeter Guards still stationed there."

"How did they defeat the Amazons so easily?" Robert asked.

"They used Onagers. Destroyed everything from afar."

"Who is the enemy?" I asked.

"The Persians."

"Shit!" I whispered.

"What do you know about them?" Julius asked.

"They're big trouble I think. I'm not exactly sure."

"Great," Horatius muttered.

"The Persians are the least of our worries, is the Amazon Queen willing to help?" I asked Rebecca.

"She is, but she'll need to get to another Amazon Base of Operations, as far away from Seattle as possible. Somewhere where she can rebuild her army, gather her forces."

"Where is that?"

"Florida."

"That's across Fucking America! How are we supposed to get her there." Julius snapped.

"I don't know, but you'll have to do it. She knows where the Hunters of Artemis are."

"Fine. We'll get Her Majesty, and take her cross-country while an entire army of Persians chase us."

Rebecca could see I was also annoyed.

"She's only going to cooperate when you do that. Also be aware that an army of Persians, is currently also traveling to Seattle. You don't want to mess with them if possible."

"We know. What about monsters?"

"They shouldn't be a problem. Ninety-Nine Percent of Monsters have traveled to Europe to Join Tartarus. The remaining one percent is nothing to worry about. _I hope."_ She muttered those last words under her breath, which didn't help my nerves.

"I'm gonna trust you Becks. Are you going to stay with us?"

"I don't have anywhere else to go, so yeah."

"Amazing."

 _ **Daniel**_

"Do you think it'll be enough for what you need?" Kronin asked.

"Are you kidding me? Of course it is!"

"Good."

"When Can We Start our Journey?"

"Not for a while yet. Daedalus still has some stuff to flesh out with the current Army and Fleet, however, while we wait, I can train you in using your powers." He said.

"What does that mean, a week?"

"A Month, maybe two."

"Excuse me? By then there won't be anything left to save."

"If we launch an attack prematurely, the Gods will lose their strongest ally out there."

"Tartarus is going to Reach Spain, I'm sure of it."

"Believe me, he won't. Ragnos will deal with it."

At that moment Harold and the others walked into the smaller chamber of Kronin.

"By the Gods of Olympus. All of these Ships and Weapons. How were you able to hide it for so long?" Harold asked.

"Sanctions and strict rules helped. However now that the Secret of the Mountain has been revealed, we are free to leave. Daedalus will begin the renovation of the Ships, and the Soldiers and Assassin's will get new equipment. As for the Guards of the Mountain, they will act as your Bodyguards from now on, Grand Master. All of you may return to your duties, except for you Son of Ragnos. You'll stay here with me. Your training begins now."

"Are you sure? I mean only a few hours ago, I was still lying in a hospital bed."

"The Sooner the better."

Commander Trion escorted everyone else out of the Chamber, leaving me and Kronin alone.

"We will start with some simple exercises. Bending the power of Chaos to your will can sap your strength quickly, no matter how powerful you think you are. You have to master Chaos."

"I already have."

"Hah! That's a bold statement. Now let's be a bit more serious. To Control Chaos, you don't use Brute Force. It takes too much strength. You will it to do something, and it will do just that. You are the Son of Ragnos, Chaos will do as it is commanded, it just hasn't realized you are powerful yet."

"So what should I do?"

"Close your eyes, and relax. Deep Breaths, maybe think of a pleasant memory." I did as he said. My Heartbeat slowed down, and the interval between each breath became longer.

"Now that you're relaxed, stretch out your hand. Try creating a spike made of Chaos. Do not Brute Force it." Kronin Warned.

"How else can I do it then?" I asked, getting annoyed.

"Relax. Just Picture it in your head and breath out. The rest your body will instinctively do."

I followed Kronin's orders, and when I breathed out, I felt words come out of my mouth, ones I didn't recognize, nor think of saying.

A spike of Chaos Energy Appeared in my hand, but it felt different. Before, it had always felt like Chaos Energy was fighting against me. Its form was more chaotic, which I thought of as normal, seeing as how it was Chaos itself I was holding in my palms.

But this Spike was different. It felt more controlled like it was working with me. I wasn't even straining to keep this energy floating above my hand.

"Now that's what I'm talking about! You feel the difference?"

"Yes!"

"Good, now play around with it for a bit."

I twirled it around my fingers a bit, it's movement much more fluid then I had ever before seen it.

"And... Fire!"

Without hesitation, I shot the spike, which pinned itself into a wall, where it disappeared leaving only a Spike shaped hole in it.

"See. These things come naturally! It'll take no time, and you'll be better than ever."

"How come my father didn't teach me this?"

"Your father is a Wise God, if not the Wisest out there. He knows very well what the Gods are like. He knew as soon as he claimed you, the Gods would see you as a threat. However, if you were weak, the Gods wouldn't immediately think about killing you. That's what he did, and now you're here."

"So Chaos is a living thing?"

"Not exactly, it is a Primordial Force, which created everything. Alive and Dead things. Chaos is as much alive, as it is dead. But let's not get all Philosophical, we still have lots to do. Play with Chaos a bit more."

I did just that. I created objects, rocks, even a Rabbit, but it didn't move.

"How do I make things that are alive?"

"That's a lesson for another day. It's a bit more complicated then what you are doing. However, there's one thing that can come in useful, and it's pretty simple. Healing. Because Chaos was the building block of everything, it is perfect for healing. We'll learn in due time how to heal humans and other animals, but Creatures of Chaos can be healed by pure chaos alone, so how about we try it on Pandora."

"But she's not here."

With a pop, she appeared in between me and Kronin, looking extremely surprised.

 _"What is Going on?_ _"_

"Oh nothing, I'm just teaching your Master some new tricks," Kronin said, stroking the broken wing of my bird. She flinched. "Oh, sorry."

"You can hear her?"

"Of course!" He said.

"How do I do it then?"

"Just like you did with the others. Relax, and control Chaos. Tell it to heal Pandora."

I closed my eyes, doing once again what Kronin told me, and I pictured Pandora's wing.

My fingertips started tingling, and I could feel a fluid tendril of Chaos snake towards Pandora's broken limb.

 _"It's Working!_ _"_ Pandora said joyfully. In no time, I could feel that it was done, and I opened my eyes. Pandora was fluttering around as a Pigeon, without a care in the world. The Tendril of Chaos dissipated.

"Very Good, Young Grand Master. Don't worry, with enough practice, you'll be able to do it faster, more precisely, and with less exertion."

After doing everything I had done, I would have felt tired if I would have used pure force, but this way I didn't feel the least bit drained.

"You're surprised aren't you? Let me guess, before I taught you this, the only way you could really summon Chaos was from Anger. You became Angry, and you let Chaos Wreak havoc."

"Well, yeah..."

"It's a good start, but tiring, as I said. For today, this was enough. The basics were the easy part, you got them in only a few minutes. Tomorrow we will continue training from now on it'll only get harder. Sleep now, you'll need it."

He Touched my shoulder, and I found myself in my bedchamber back at Chaos Fort.

I undressed, and threw my stuff onto the floor, before climbing into Bed.

Even though today had been eventful, the excitement I had gone through had worn down my body more then I realized.

I quickly nodded off to sleep.

 _ **John**_

"Hey, John!"

Someone was shaking my shoulder.

"What is it?" I moaned, yawning.

"We're stopped at a Gas Station, you need anything?" It was Sophia.

"Yeah, actually, gotta go take a p-"

"I don't want to know the details, thank you very much. Do what you need to do." She said, looking down at her book. Susan was asleep next to her, and Robert had Changed spaces with Rebecca so that Sophia and Becks could sit next to each other.

I got out of the car and stretched, before heading towards the toilets. An Imperial Gold Gladius was strapped around my waist, courtesy of the Romans. My trusty knife was strapped around my ankle.

The point is, I was ready for whatever I was going to find in the male toilets.

On the way there, I met a few Romans who were walking back from the small shop with bags of snacks and Chocolate bars.

Finally, I opened the restroom doors, immediately getting hit by the awful smell of stale urine.

"Great."

It felt like agony, to stand in that stink, but thankfully it didn't take long, and I was washing hands, ready to leave this place.

I was whistling tunelessly, when something tink-ed against the floor, like a nickel, startling me. I hadn't even realized someone else was in here. Especially since there was no other car parked outside. Maybe it was just me being paranoid.

Turning around to leave, I glanced at the stalls. It seemed like nobody was inside them. A coin was at my feet though, so I picked it up to study it a bit.

The coin didn't look like any type of Currency I had seen before. I could see the writing on the coins, but it was in Spanish.

 _"El rey y los dioses viven en los corazones del pueblo persa._ I wonder what that means?" I said to myself.

The Toilet Stall burst open, and a man in a shawl and chain armor ran out, brandishing a sword.

"Shit!" I barely had time to dodge the swing, which chipped into the wooden door frame behind me.

I tugged my sword free from its scabbard, turning on the man, who had already freed his own sword.

He charged at me once again, but dodging him was easier this time, now that I was prepared, and his swing broke the sink, smashing the dirty porcelain into tiny pieces, many of them lodging into the face of the soldier. When he pulled his sword free, a water pipe burst, drenching him in water.

"Who are you? What are you doing?" I asked.

"For King Shradeth!"

He charged at me but slipped on the floor due to it being wet. I just managed to jump aside as he slid past me, back into the cubicle he had burst from.

"Stop! I don't wish to fight."

The Man didn't stand up. His sword was poking through his chest. There was no saving him.

Walking over to him, I knelt down and take a closer look at his clothes.

"Where are you from?" I asked no one in particular.

I turned the coin around, which was still in my hand, and on the other side had a picture of what I could only describe as the King.

Jogging outside, I searched for Robert. He knew Spanish.

"What is this?" He asked, taking the coin.

"Ran into some trouble in the toilets."

"What happened?" Sophia asked.

Before I can respond, Robert's eyes widened.

"What is it?" Sophia looked at Robert.

"AMBUSH!" He yelled, jumping up. Instantly everyone was on alert.

"What are you talking about?" Julius asked.

 **The far side of the carpark exploded with movement.**


	8. A Battle of the Night

**_John_**

I only got a quick glimpse of the ambushing force, before the view was blocked by an ever-growing wall of shields, formed by the men who were closest to their equipment.

The parade ground voice of Julius cut through the clanking of equipment, emerging from the darkness.

"TO ARMS MEN! FASTER YOU FOOLS!"

Around a hundred men had managed to form up before the tidal wave of Persians crashed against the wall of shields. It held, but only just.

"AND STAB!"

The Row of shields opened up slightly, and the pointy Gladius of the Romans entered the densely packed Persian Force. Screams emerged.

"Catullus! Scorpion!" Horatius yelled, and he ran over to one of the Mini-Vans, quickly followed by a Soldier. Together they rolled out a menacing Machine of Death from the back of the Van. I had read about the scorpion, and this hardly looked like it. It seemed the Romans had put it through extensive upgrades.

Cogs and Gears ran Along its body, and I could see that they allowed you to wind and Fire it by simply turning a Winch. There were two slots for arrows, and it was being automatically reloaded from two massive Drum Mags. A Retractable stand emerged from underneath it, elevating it above the Soldiers.

A third Legionary Ran over to help them, and in a few seconds, they were already using it to mow down the enemy. Hundred of Persians crowded towards the Defensive Line, but the Soldiers were holding it. The Enemy was bunched up so close, that every shot from the Scorpion meant a guaranteed hit, and they were losing troops fast.

"Let's go help them!" Sophia told us.

I drew my bow and started firing into the Persians, knowing that every shot hit a target. Robert was throwing grenades into the enemy ranks.

"We Can't Hold the Line Centurion!" A Soldier roared. The Line was buckling. Letting the entire enemy army through would mean an instant defeat.

"Everyone, Prepare for Maneuver Mars!" Julius Ordered. "NOW!"

The Roman Soldiers pushed the Persians away with their shields, making them fall onto each other. Then they all pulled a Pilum up to their shoulders, and with a collective Roar, they threw it into the Crowd of Persians, causing insane amounts of casualties to the under-armored Persians.

"AND CHARGE!"

Without hesitation, every Soldier ran forward, stabbing at the unprepared enemy. I could see the Persians getting ready to rout.

A massive " _thwack_ " came from the darkness where the Persians had emerged from, and a Ballista bolt sailed through the air, plowing through Ten Soldiers bunched together, killing most of them Instantly, but also taking out a few Persians with it.

The Ranks of the Romans had now become disorganized, which didn't look like too much of a problem. The Odds were more even than it had been at the start of the battle. Hundreds had fallen already.

"This isn't right," Sophia muttered. "Something's still missing."

"We're winning, this is good," I said, pulling back, and releasing another arrow, taking a Persian in the throat.

"No... We have to reform the line. FALL BACK!" She yelled, but the Romans had succumbed to the Lust for Blood. They were doing a good job of clearing the enemy.

Hundreds of Soul-Shattering Battle-Cries emerged from the Night, and more Persians Charged forth from the shadows, catching the Roman Line, that had since pushed forward, in the side.

The Surprised Romans on the side only had time to put up their shields, before the mass of Persians crashed against them once again. They couldn't hold them back, and the Romans found their half-formed Shield-wall breaking up. It was turning into duels between Groups of Romans and Persians.

Close to fifty Persian soldiers decided to come after us, and the Scorpion, seeing as how it was causing so much damage.

The charge faltered as the front line was mowed down. Another grenade flew from Robert's hand, and I was continuously firing arrows into the crowd.

A well-aimed arrow struck Catullus, who was manning the winch, and the Hail of Arrows stopped. That was enough for the Persians to get close. We couldn't let them destroy the Scorpion.

"Let's show them how the Greeks fight," Sophia smirked as the Persians surrounded us.

I shot two Persians, hitting one in the chest, and another in the face, before slinging my bow onto my shoulder and unsheathing my sword and a knife.

We split up, each of us going to fight our own fights. Four Persians ran straight at me. I blocked the first strike, cut at the arm of the second Persian. It hit, and blood splattered the floor. I punched the first in the stomach and threw him at the other two still in the fight. One of them dodged and ran at me, but I threw my knife at his leg, connecting with a wet _thunk_.

Deflecting a hit from the man I had cut the arm of, I stepped forward and kneed him in the groin. He went down with a whimper. Two more left.

Both were standing, having jumped back to their feet while I wasn't focused on them.

Without warning, Skeletal hands grabbed at their feet and dragged them underground. Swallowed by the earth.

That must have been Becks.

I looked around to see where I could help.

The others meanwhile, were doing a better job than me. Robert was using a Large Hammer to cause damage to anyone that came close, while Susan was talking with the Persians close to her, convincing them that their Allies were, in fact, trying to kill them, and they joined the fighting on our side. I had some newfound respect for my girlfriend now.

Desdemona, on the other hand, was on a whole new level of terrifying. She had created a Hell-Hound out of Mist, which was pouncing on Persians, tearing them apart. I had no clue how, but it sure wasn't bad to have a Hell-Hound on our side.

As for Rebecca, She was bringing back the dead to fight on our side. Two Native Indian Warriors, a Redcoat, and A US Marine crawled out of the Concrete, and they instantly started attacking the Persians. One Persian, who was either the Bravest or the Stupidest, charged towards her. He learned very quickly that it was a mistake to do so when his chest was pierced by a Stygian Iron sword.

But Sophia was by far causing the most Panic among the Persian Soldiers. She was strolling closer to the Persians, her Stormy-grey eyes silently issuing a challenge to anyone who got close. She was not to be messed with.

One Persians was too stupid to see that and ran forward.

Out of nowhere, a Jagged edged Bronze Sword appeared in her hand. The Persian didn't have time to react before it struck him in the neck.

A Badly aimed prod with a spear jolted me back to reality. I was still in a fight, and new Enemies had closed in on me.

I kicked the nearest one in the knee, hearing the crack of bone, while the second one received a cut on his forearm. Yet more of them arrived.

"I do not want to do this!" I yelled, my Built-In Hippocratic Oath actively rebelling against my will to fight. I had learned to suppress it as I got older, but it was hard to concentrate on two things in a fight.

"The same isn't true for me!" Horatius yelled, before gunning them all down with bolts.

I looked around to see what the Romans were up to, just to see more Ballista bolts smack into Soldiers.

The soldiers that had been able to rip free from the melee had formed to lines of defense, one around us and the Scorpio, the other around Julius.

The Persians Realized that We weren't going to get anywhere like this, and a horn signaled for them to Pull back. The Ballistae stopped firing, and the Scorpion was reloaded, though it didn't fire after it did so.

I nocked an Arrow but didn't let go of it just yet.

"So this is what became of the Roman Legion after Viscount took over. To be honest, I am very pleased about that. Makes it more interesting to fight."

A bulky man stepped forward, a large Sword strapped to his back.

Julius stepped forward.

"What do you want Dravin? What are you doing here?"

"I'd be very happy to answer your questions, however, you are not in the position to ask us about that."

I looked around the car park, where our fight had gone down in. Forty to Fifty Romans Lay on the ground, some still writhing in pain, but in the current stance we were in, there was no chance we could save them. Compared to that, there lay maybe Three Hundred Persians, Most of them clearly distinguishable from the Scorpion Shots and Pila lodged in their bodies. I saw some of my arrows sticking out of bodies.

It was weird how Shooting a bow at people didn't make me hesitate when close combat did.

"What do you mean?"

"You do not realize yet, but the Dynasty of the Gods is coming to an End. You may kill us, but the King of the Persians will have his revenge. There are many more Persians, waiting for the Orders of Tartarus. And not just the Persians. The Enemies of Rome and Greece are still around, and they've joined the Persians to see the End of you."

Julius didn't seem to be too interested. "Surrender now and you will survive." He ordered.

The Persians started Chanting in what sounded like Spanish.

It sounded horrible and gave me the creeps.

The Man called Dravin laughed.

"It's too late."

Multiple large Clunks came from behind the Persians, and Sophia's eyes widened.

"IT'S A DISTRACTION!" She yelled, before taking cover behind one of the SUVs. Most Romans followed what she did, along with me and the other greeks. Three Bolts rocked the SUV, nearly toppling it on us.

I looked behind me, where the highway was. We wouldn't be able to cross it. Too dangerous. We were screwed.

Bright headlights zoomed past at high speeds. Yet one seemed to be going much faster than the rest.

"We have to-" Sophia started.

In the last second, the car I had noticed veered into the Parking Lot, straight towards the Persians, the Driver jumping out of it in the last second.

The last thing the Persians saw was a Black and Orange Cab ram into them, before Exploding them along with the entire gas station.

It lit up the massive Onagers behind the Persians, Primed to Fire. For a split second, we saw what nearly caused our death. Then it too was engulfed in flames, creating more explosions as the Imperial Gold Payload detonated.

"Sorry, I'm late." Said a Voice. Every Single Roman's Face snapped towards the Man.

Turning to face him, we were greeted by the sight of Tristan, grinning. On his finger was a large ring. He was dusting himself off.

"You? I remember you, you Charmspeaking bitch!" Julius roared, walking over to Tristan and grabbing him by his shirt.

"Hey. Hey! Centurion. Calm Down. I just saved your asses."

Reluctantly, Centurion Julius Dropped him, before giving out orders.

"Sweep This entire place. Search for Prisoners and Collect our Dead."

Sophia looked at Tristan.

"How did you get here?"

He looked sheepishly at his feet. "I kinda followed you. I wanted to show Viscount I had changed, so I was planning on helping you. I had camped down nearby, ready to leave when you did, but I noticed fighting and Explosions, so I came over as quickly as I could."

"Well, you came just in time." She sighed.

"How did you even explode the car?" I asked.

"Always kept a Stash of Imperial Gold Grenades in it, which I nicked from the Camp."

He threw the Safety Pin at me, which I caught mid-air.

 _ **The Augur**_

"Is Anyone Home?"

My teeth were chattering from the Cold.

"Bonjour." Said a Female Voice.

A beautiful girl about my age stood above me, leaning against a railing, wearing a white blouse with white jeans, her skin pale.

"Who are you? I wish to speak to Boreas!"

"Ah, my Father is, let's say, not available, mon amis. As for my name, it is Khione." She spoke with a soft French accent.

"Are you a goddess?"

Her smile contorted into pure anger.

"I was once the Queen of Snow! Now, look at what the Olympians have made me into. A pet for my Father. My Power is Gone. I couldn't even kill you, no matter how hard I would try."

"I'm sorry, the loss you've suffered because of the rage of the gods is terrible. I come with a proposal to your Father."

"Well, he's not here, as you can see. He's currently working for Zeus, trying to contain Typhon. The Two idiots, known as my Brothers, also went with him. As for me, I'm in house arrest."

"Very well, I will tell it to you then. I wish for Boreas and his Children to join our cause."

"Go on." She muttered, her eyes glinting.

"I work for Tartarus. He has risen from the Abyss to avenge Gaia."

"HA! There is one thing I trust less than the Gods. The Word of a Primordial."

"Gaia worked in the Dark, her power lay in Deception, not Sheer Force."

"Yes, I know that."

"Tartarus has gathered an army, the likes of which has never been seen before. He will wipe away all traces of the Olympians. His plan will not fail."

"That does sound good, but what use does Tartarus have for a Wind god and his Children?"

"Boreas is doing too good of a job at guarding Typhon, so Tartarus wants him to stop that. If he won't give in, then there are other methods."

She thought for a second.

"Do you know what? I like that plan. However, I cannot help. I am a prisoner in my own home."

"That's where you need my help."

"Really?" She walked down the stairs, coming to stop in front of me.

A bead of sweat dribbled down the side of my face, even though it was cold as hell.

"Yes. We have to destroy the Magic of the Gods that is keeping you here."

"How do you do that?"

I grabbed a glass ball from my belt. Inside it swirled a portion of the power of Tartarus and gave it to her.

"Crush it."

Without hesitation, she did so, and the swirling hellfire of Tartarus surrounded her, burning away the Magic of the Gods.

When the fire disappeared, she no longer wore casual clothes, but an even more beautiful white dress. She smiled at me, but the look in her eyes revealed how powerful she was.

"This will do." She said, before touching my shoulder. Together we disappeared in a blizzard of snow.

 _ **Daniel**_

"Hello, Kronin," I said, standing once again in the Chamber I had left yesterday.

"Welcome back, Son of Chaos. Let's get to it at once, yes?"

"Yes."

"Very well. To start things off, let me tell you about yesterday."

"You have to relax."

"No. That was just so that you wouldn't ask too many questions."

"Oh."

"So anyway, the real power behind Chaos is Love."

"Love?"

"Yes, it might sound quite, how would you say it?"

"Cheesy?"

"Let it be that. But It's true. Ragnos created Life out of Love for Creation. Relaxation helps focus your Love. Let me guess, when I told you to relax, you thought of someone close to you. Someone you loved."

He was, of course, correct. It was Sophia who I had thought of.

"It sounds a bit like the God, with a Capital G, from the Bible."

"Many Religions and Cultures Intertwine, whether you notice it or not. While Ragnos remained Ragnos for Greeks, he became the one and True God for the Christians and Jews, Yahweh. He appears in many other Cultures as the Creator of the World, with different names each time."

"Wow."

"Yes."

"So can I make Animals?"

"Yes, it's not that hard. For you at least."

"How do I do it?"

"Create something out of Chaos, Something small to start off with."

I decided that I'd try and create a Flesh and Blood Rabbit, The one that had dissipated yesterday.

The chaos-black form of the bunny was soon in front of me again.

"Now, focus on it a bit. Divert some of your affection at it."

I felt a slight tugging sensation in the pit of my stomach when I tried it, and the bunny started gaining color. It was getting whiter, but a few spots remained dark.

A black-spotted rabbit now sat in front of me.

"Very good!" Kronin said, smiling. "As their creator, all creatures you make will have a connection with you. You'll hear their thoughts if you concentrate hard enough and they listen to your commands."

"Like Pandora?"

"Not quite. Pandora is connected to you, however creating such a powerful creature is beyond you, I'm afraid."

"I can't do everything that a god can," I smirked.

"Maybe it's better that way," Kronin told me. "Power that worries the current gods is large enough, but those that are on par with a Primordial shouldn't be given to Mortals, nevermind the fact that nobody is strong enough to survive such amounts of power living in their bodies for long."

"Fair enough. So what are we doing next?"

"We're just getting started."

The look in Kronin's eyes made me want to cuddle the rabbit, but I forced myself to stay still.

"You're able to conjure Chaos and make it come alive. But creating a Rabbit during a fight doesn't really help you."

"Then I shoot them with those Chaos Spikes."

"You could, but it'd be hard to fight with just one power."

"What do you mean?"

"To properly use your powers for combat, you'll need to train your body and your mind. Right now, I doubt you could lift yourself with your powers. You could if you became angry, but that would tire you out fast, which might solve your problems at that point in time, but it'll cause more problems than you could potentially go without."

"How do I train my mind, other than solving puzzles and studying?"

"Oh, I'm not talking about that."

"Then what?"

"Come, there is a training room for this exact purpose."

Kronin warped away to a doorway, and I walked after him. The corridor was short, at the end was a door.

So far, this day's training hadn't been too tiring, and I was happy about that.

As soon as I opened the door, all my confidence left me.

The Most frightening workout room I had ever seen lay before me.

 _ **The General**_

"Lord Tartarus?"

The Pit glared at me.

"I am not in a Good mood, General. Spit it out."

"Where should we go from here? Our only path is blocked."

"The gods think they can stop me. All this does is just slows me down. I will achieve Victory though. Lay a Camp, and get all monsters to start building boats."

"Why don't we build a bridge?"

"That's what they would want us to do. Zeus can easily strike that bridge, without breaking a sweat. Building boats, however, is a better option. Having Thousands of boats would be too much for even the King of the Gods, though I doubt he would have enough power to even think about attacking us. Without Posiedon with them, he can't conjure up a storm against us.

"I understand, Lord. I will pass on the command at once." I said, before leaving.

I told the Horn Blower to signal for us to make Camp.

While the monsters set up camp, I looked at the Italian Countryside, cut in half by a vast expanse of water. I couldn't even begin to comprehend how much energy Zeus's Master Bolt contained. Cutting off a Peninsula with Lightning Bolts is no easy task, even for a god.

 _ **Sophia**_

"Altogether we have Forty-Three Dead. Fourteen of us are badly wounded, and they would just slow us down, without being able to properly fight." A soldier reported to Julius.

"But let's remember that the Enemy lost close to two thousand soldiers, their main army lost very important supplies, and the Augur lost his Bodyguard and Second-in-Command, Dravin," Julius told the Group of soldiers surrounding him. "This was a well-fought battle, and we showed them what the Romans are capable of. However, this wouldn't have been possible without this man-"

Julius cleared his throat, struggling to say the right words.

"His name is Tristan Gillard, an Ex-Centurion in the Legion. Because of our losses, and to thank him for his help, I will promote him to Legionnaire."

"Thank you, Centurion." Tristan smiled, shaking the hand of Julius. Everyone clapped, slightly lifting the somber mood of the after-effects of battle.

"You'll find spare armor, I'm sure. Now, onto other things." He looked at his surroundings. "We have to take the dead back to camp, so they can be buried properly. Those that are wounded to the point where they can't fight may return if they wish. Thankfully, none of our vehicles have been damaged, so we still have Thirteen Minibuses, Two SUVs, and the Equipment Van. So that we don't bring along empty buses with us, you can take five of them back to camp. Each Bus carries twelve people. Enough for carrying the dead and the wounded. Is there anyone who wishes to stay, while being wounded?"

One man put up his hand. Catullus, the man who had been hit while firing the scorpion. John had taken a look at him. The Arrow had just grazed the tendon, so exerting any force with it wouldn't be too lucky.

"Are you sure, Catullus?"

"I still have one arm that's fine. I'll fight." He said, grimacing.

"Very well. Now, I need Five drivers for each of the Minibuses. If you can drive, please hand in your name tags so we can pick five of you out."

The nametags were quickly collected by Horatius and placed in a helmet. Five were randomly picked, and Julius read them out.

"Jay, Terrance, Gerald, Aetius, and Hortensius. You'll be the Drivers. Get your stuff together, and move out as soon as you can."

The five people said goodbyes to everyone, wishing them luck, before climbing onto their buses, and driving out of the wrecked gas station's car park.

"The rest of us, let's get going. We still have quite a few hours ahead of us."

Mutterings started between the Legionaries as they got into the remaining Vans. We got into the SUV, and Julius started the Car.

 **Very soon, we were once again on the road, as if nothing had happened at that gas station.**

 **-ServantofRagnos**


	9. A City in Flames

**"Wake Up!"**

I was shaken awake, this time by Desdemona.

"What is it?" I moaned.

"We're nearing Seattle, and things don't look too good."

"I've slept for that long?"

She nodded, and I rubbed my eyes, yawning. Fighting does this to people.

Lifting my head slightly, I looked through the window, and for a second I thought it was morning. The entire city of Seattle stood in flames, glowing like a light bulb in the darkness of the night.

"Why aren't we moving?"

"Traffic." Was all I got from Julius. His head was resting on the wheel. The seat beside him was empty.

"Horatius?"

"I've sent the boy, and a few others to check on what's causing this. They'll be back any minute." Julius said, lifting his head from the wheel.

I rubbed my eyes again, rubbing away the remaining sleep with that one movement.

"Do we have any news about the Wounded?"

"Yes, around half an hour ago we got a called from Camp. They arrived in New Rome, but Viscount didn't have good news."

"What did he say?"

"Told me the Eagles have returned, at least quite a few of them. They brought word of a massive army heading out from Phoenix, Arizona. Hundreds of Thousands of Enemy Soldiers."

"Persians?"

"I'm afraid so. However, this information was the final push needed to convince the Senate. They've agreed to your plan of Evacuation, and even now they are getting ready to leave. He's got maybe a few days before the army arrives, then he'll be screwed. The 12th Legion is only so strong. Thankfully, he has an Entire Legion's worth of soldiers to help with packing up everything. The Sponsors got word of the attack instantly, and sent Cargo Planes, trucks, troop transports, everything. Our mission is to escort the Queen wherever she needs to go, then meet up with Viscount at Camp Half-Blood."

"Cargo Planes?"

"Yes. Anything that isn't that important is getting packed onto the Cargo Plane, including some of the New Rome Citizens and Soldiers to accompany them. They'll be landing at Long Island.

I leaned back in my seat, sighing deeply.

"Let us pray to Fortuna that they survive," I muttered.

Rebecca stirred beside me, before sitting up suddenly.

"Something's coming." She whispered.

"What?"

Without answering she leaned towards Julius.

"Julius, we have to get away from here. Something's approaching."

"What is, to be exact?"

"No idea, but it's huge, and definitely not Greek."

"Well we can't back up with the buses, that's for sure. We're stuck here."

"Then we have to run on foot." She was panicking, something I had rarely seen happen to her before.

"Fine, I'll sound the order."

Before he could reach for the radio, the blurred sound of a megaphone cut through the night. It was too far away to make out what they were saying into it.

All hell broke loose a second later. The rumbling of cars and the megaphone was suddenly interrupted by the sound of dozens of Stacatto Machinegun fire.

Mortal drivers instantly jumped out of their car and started running away from the sound.

Julius grabbed the Radio.

"FORM BATTLE LINES IMMEDIATELY!" He yelled into it, before climbing out.

Rebecca was looking at Julius intently.

"NO! We must escape. Whatever this thing is, it's power is close to godly."

"How do you know?"

"It must be connected to the underworld. Don't question it. I KNOW!"

The Gunfire had woken up everyone, and soon enough we were scrambling after Julius, putting on armor and gathering weapons.

A Military APC Exploded in a shower of sparks and hellfire, lighting up a massive black figure, easily ten meters tall.

"What the fuck is that?" A Legionary cried from the Car behind us.

"Get into positions!" Julius roared.

A second APC flew through the air, spinning like a frisbee until it came crashing back down to the ground, plowing through multiple cars. Some of the running Mortals looked at us with relief, which made me wonder what the Mist was making us look like.

Desdemona was muttering something, bending the mist to her will. The Roman Soldiers flickered slightly, their armor turning to military fatigues, their Swords and shields turning into Assault Rifles and Riot Shields.

Julius was still trying to form a defensive line, but the cars stacked bumper to bumper weren't helping matters.

"Those Mortals won't be able to do anything against a monster. Not without Celestial Bronze or Imperial Gold." He said, and I nodded.

The Towering Figure of the monster was briefly lit up by a Rocket, but it did nothing more than annoy it. Its face looked vaguely human, but it was contorted into a permanent sneer, and he wore black armor, a massive sword strapped to his back.

"FULAD-ZEREH!" It roared, before stomping on a Tank. The Tank didn't stand a chance, and it crumpled like a tin can.

It noticed us, probably because dozens of demigods had quite the smell. It dropped the APC it had picked up, causing the Mortal Soldiers to scatter, it started walking towards us, no longer interested by the Bullets ricocheting off its armor, nor the fact that with every step, it ruined at least two cars.

I heard the clunk of the Scorpion as it was made operational. Shortly after, the constant thwacking of the bolts signaled that our main artillery was working.

The first shot hit, and it was immediately followed by an angry roar. It kicked a car at us, landing on one of our Mini-Buses.

"PILA!" Julius roared raising his own, "AND FIRE!" The Pila of a hundred soldiers flew through the air, turning the giant into a living pincushion.

It was still far from dying, and it showed us that by throwing its sword at the main source of annoyance, the Scorpion. It flew through the air so fast, I hardly had time to follow its route through the air. The Soldiers manning realized what was coming their way and tried to jump out of its way. Two of them landed safely, the third, however, was cut in half by the massive sword. The Sword destroyed the scorpion without slowing down, continuing into a small group of Legionnaires still trying to form up. I saw the Tessarius in the middle of them. They didn't stand a chance as the sword plowed into them, cutting through armor, and pulverizing bones where the hilt struck them.

"SECOND VOLLEY!" Julius ordered, quickly grabbing a new pilum from the stack behind the Soldiers.

The Giant had other ideas. It took two large run-up steps, before jumping off of the ground, and landing behind us, on two of our buses, crumpling them into an unrecognizable shape.

In one swift move, the Romans changed direction, but they didn't get the chance to throw their Pila.

With a large stroke of his forearm, the Giant took out half of the remaining Cohort, sending them flying many meters into the air, some of those soldiers were closely followed by cars.

"STOP!" Susan and Tristan yelled as one. Instantly everyone, even the Giant, stopped what they were doing and looked at the pair. I lowered my weapon doing the same. Not willingly.

The children of the Love Goddess realized that they had caused more harm than good. They looked at each other and silently agreed.

"KILL THAT GIANT!" They shouted, and the Romans all lifted their Pila, getting ready to throw.

The Giant, however, took it into his own hands.

Grabbing his sword from the ground, he flipped it around so the blade was facing inwards, towards his body, and he stabbed himself through the chest.

The Magic of Charmspeak faded from its eyes, and it gurgled a curse in a foreign language, before falling sideways, onto yet more of our mini-buses.

"What the fuck just happened?" Robert wondered out loud, as the Giant died.

"That was anticlimactic," Rebecca muttered.

"WHAT ARE YOU STANDING AROUND FOR! TREAT THE WOUNDED!" Julius roared, and the Romans instantly started running around, trying to find survivors. "COULDN'T YOU TWO HAVE DONE THAT SOONER?" I yelled at Susan and Tristan.

Before they could reply, he ran off to see to the wounded.

John followed him seeing as he was probably the best doctor we had right now, while the rest of us inspected the Body of the Giant, which hadn't turned to dust yet.

"Is it Persian?" Robert asked.

"I mean, if there are monsters from Greek and Roman Myths, I don't see why the Persians can't have monsters of their own," Rebecca replied.

"You could detect it Becks. How?" I said, looking at her.

"Monsters are made out of the same basic force, no matter the Mythos they come from. But this was slightly different. Not exactly monstrous, yet not human. It felt like it had come back from the dead."

"But how was Charmspeaking so effective against it? It literally shrugged off Bullets, Rockets, Pila, and Bolts, only to kill itself at the first command we gave for it to do so."

"Maybe because there were two of us saying it at once.?" Susan theorized.

"I doubt it. A monster so powerful as he was wouldn't have been so enthralled by Greek Magic, unless..."

"Unless what?"

"Unless the Persian Myths don't contain Charmspeak. Meaning Persian Monsters would be weaker against it then a Greek or Roman one."

"That seems logical."

Julius ran up to us.

"Fucking hell what are you people doing? Help Out here would you!"

"Sorry," I said, running to the nearest body I could find, the body of a man, and treating him the best I could.

I beckoned Rebecca to me once I had bandaged up the wound on the man's chest. He muttered thanks to me.

"Yes?" She asked. I put a hand on her shoulder.

"You should probably shadow travel to the Amazon Queen, tell her to get ready. Where is the Bunker?"

"It's just outside the city, along this road. It'll be a small maintenance door, carved into the side of a hill. It's not hard to miss."

"Okay." I lift my hand from her shoulder, and she instantly disappears into the shadows, leaving behind a cold puff of air.

I looked towards the flaming wreckage of the Military Vehicles that once stood side by side, now strewn across the highway. Two People wearing Roman tunics, and a third wearing Military Gear were running up towards us. Julius noticed too, and a small smile appeared on his face as he saw Horatius was one of the returning scouts.

"Sir!" Horatius said while he and the other Legionnaire saluted.

"It's good to see you alive and well. Where's Tim and Jason?"

"Jason is okay, some scratches. He's being cared for by the Soldiers back at the blockade, Tim was killed by the APC explosion debris."

"Another death that we can chalk up for today." Julius sighed.

"Excuse me?" The person in Military Gear said, getting slightly annoyed at being ignored.

"I'm sorry. Yes?"

"I'm Lieutenant Jefferson. I just wanted to give my thanks for your help. I didn't know they were sending a second Detachment, but you saved our asses. What even was that?"

Julius composed himself and glanced at Desdemona, who nodded. A small tug from her direction signaled that she was bending the mist once again.

"Oh, Don't worry about it, Lieutenant. Top Secret Project. All I can say is a Prototype Unmanned Aircraft went Rogue on us."

The Officer's Eyes glazed over slightly before he nodded.

"I see. Do you need any other help with your mission?"

We all looked at the remaining Mini-Buses trapped between driverless cars and mostly destroyed.

"Actually, we could use some Transport."

 _ **Commander** **Tarik**_

The City burned in front of me, as the Army walked through the streets, torching any building left standing. The Amazon Queen was still alive somewhere, and the King's orders were that no Buildings were to be left standing in Seattle. Either we smoke her out, or she's so stubborn she burns with the buildings.

So far, it was to no avail. We were none the wiser of the location of the Queen, and our supplies were dwindling. The Army only bought enough Food and Water to last us the journey and a day in Seattle. That way we could travel as fast as possible. The reinforcements, which were lead by the Augur's bodyguard, carried the supplies we needed to complete our assignment. Those very reinforcements were now late, meaning we were starting to starve.

I was looking at an apartment complex collapsing in on itself, thinking of sleep, when a soldier ran up to me. It was Captain Paniz, one of the few women in the Army of Persia.

"Sir!"

"What is it?" I asked.

"The Demon! Fulad-Zereh. It's escaped!"

"What?" I spun around to start shouting at her.

"It broke through its cage and stole Shamshir-e Zomorrodneg ãr from the armory."

"You're telling me, a Demon from the Old Ages has escaped, taken the only weapon we can kill it with, and ran off. Not to mention it's wearing all black armor, and it's night."

"Yes..."

"THEN FUCKING FIND IT," I shouted at her.

"Perimeter Guards reported gunshots from one of the Mortal Checkpoints, along with explosion. That's where it is, I'm sure of it."

"Take Five hundred soldiers with you. Bring it back alive! If you fail to do so, I won't be so forgiving." I growled.

She saluted, before turning around and shouting at the nearest soldiers to follow her.

This had put an interesting spin on this night.

 _ **Sophia**_

"Thank you, we're good from here."

"But the city is further away."

"We don't want them to notice is, do we?" Julius said.

"True. Well then, thank you once again, and I wish you the best of luck."

"You too. Farewell."

The Soldier did a U-turn with the truck and went back down the highway. I looked around at our group. The Remaining Sixty Soldiers in the Cohort had been split up, Seventeen Legionnaires, along with Tristan, me, Robert, Susan, John and Desdemona, Julius, Horatius and Septia, the signifer of the Century, had all come with us. The others had stayed behind, seeing as how most of them were wounded, and could hardly move. We also had to have some people back there to help the mortals with freeing our surviving vehicles, though there was hardly anything left of them.

We walked for five minutes, before reaching the maintenance door that Rebecca had described.

"It's your Quest, you should knock," Julius told me.

I gulped and took a step forward. I could see the Romans standing with their shields interlocked, ready for a fight.

Once I knocked on the metal door, I stepped back. A second later, a series of locks clunked, reminding me of the sound a bank vault door would make.

The door slowly creaked open. Rebecca was standing before us, frowning.

"Get in, All of you. Quick. We don't have much time."

We didn't think twice and quickly rushed in. Rebecca locked the door behind us. We found ourselves in a bunker, more spacious then I would have thought. Around a Dozen Amazon Soldiers stood their, hands on their weapons. All of them looked worn and very tired.

"Welcome, to this Shit-hole." Said an older woman humorlessly, who let go of her sword strapped to her back, and walked up to us. "I am Queen Ostia Ferris, the Queen of the Amazons. This is what's left of the Seattle Unit."

"We've come to help you."

"We know, Rebecca has already told us, but I thought there'd be more of you."

"There was some trouble along the way. Our losses were severe."

"Come in, sit down. We've still got some time."

"Until what?"

"We've got a plan, that'll show the Persians that messing with the Amazons is not worth it."

"What are you planning to do?" Robert asked, sitting down.

I noticed the guards glaring at him, but Ostia waved her hand and they calmed down. Robert, meanwhile, was oblivious to how close he was to getting killed.

"We had tons of underground armories, which we've rigged to explode, sending their Army to the very bottom of Hades."

"You mean-"

"We're taking out the Persians, along with Seattle."

"What? You can't possibly think about destroying the entire city?"

"I am thinking just that."

"What about the Mortals? It's our job to protect them. We can't blow apart an entire city while there are still mortals in there."

"Most of the Mortals have either escaped, or they've been killed. We do not want an enemy army here, otherwise, we'll be divided on too many fronts. If you want to, you can lead your soldiers into that city on a suicide mission, but you won't achieve a lot. Many more people will die if we do not take out the Persians. Right here, right now."

"You can't just-"

"I will do what I see best. Right now, I see an opportunity to take out an army in a key strategic location. This is a war, we can't afford to hesitate because of a few mortals. And we either explode it now, or the Persians will torch the entire city in an attempt to flush me out of the city anyway." There was no anger in her voice, only the drowsiness from a lack of sleep.

However much I disagreed with her, I knew deep down she was right.

"How long until it's fully complete."

"A few minutes."

"Hurry Up then," Julius said.

"My Queen?" Called an Amazon Warrior from her watch position.

"What is it, Beatrice?"

"You might want to see this."

The Amazonian Queen Grumbled, before walking over to a small window, facing the highway.

I saw her eyes widen, which made me raise an eyebrow. I too walked over and looked out.

Instantly, I realized the problem. Hundreds upon hundreds of Persian soldiers were marching down the highway, straight towards the Military Blockade we had left behind.

"Oh no. No, no no." I muttered, immediately turning around ready to go outside.

"Where do you think you are going?" The Queen of the Amazons asked.

"We have friends back there. If we don't help them, they're going to die."

"What's going on outside?" Julius asked, his eyes narrowing and darting between me and Ostia.

"Going outside would only reveal our position to the enemy. You cannot fight against an entire army." Ostia said, ignoring the Centurion's Question.

"Listen here, lady. Whatever you're tal-" He glimpsed the mass of Persians outside, and his voice stopped working.

The expression of the Amazon Queen softened, looking at the aging Centurion with compassion.

"Centurion, I'm sorry for the losses you've received during your quest. However, you can't send your men outside, or they'll just kill us all."

It looked like the stress of the entire day had finally caught up with Julius, and he sat down in a chair.

"I've never felt more helpless. Is this how things go? The Comrades I knew for many years, even before the Civil war, now all dead in the matter of a few hours? I keep telling myself that they were soldiers, that this is their duty, but was it really?"

We stayed silent.

The remaining soldiers of the First Cohort seemed to also collapse in on themselves, following their Centurion.

I turned towards the Amazon Queen.

"How long did you say it will take to finish rigging the explosives?"

"A few minutes maybe, why?"

I ignored the question. "The explosion, how big will it be?"

"Certainly big enough to wipe out the entire city."

"Then we need to wait for the Persian Army to return back to the city. I'm guessing they've gone to track down that Monster of theirs, meaning they'll be returning to the city once they've finished at the Blockade. Once they pass us on the way back, we all leave the bunker and return to our Convoy. We've probably got enough Mini-Buses remaining to get out of this mess. Can you set it off wirelessly?"

"Definitely."

"Well then, we have a plan," I said sternly, looking once again at the broken Centurion.

 _ **Daniel**_

"Sir!"

I turned to face the voice, and my gaze fell on Harold. He was jogging towards me from his Chambers, only half-dressed. He had caught me right before I could have gone through the doorway. Three days ago, when we first glimpsed the secret of the mountain, that was when we last talked.

"Harold, it's nice to finally see you again. What would you like?" I said, smiling at my friend and Second-in-Command.

"Daniel. I realize you're currently hard at work with the Oracle, training, but I thought you should know about what's been happening in the meantime. What I've heard from Jonathan, you'll be very busy after a few days of training."

"Go on."

"So as you know, we are now actively at war against Tartarus, so I've started the recruitment of Soldiers, as well as training them. Most of them come from the Mortal world, but the Civilians of Wilnos are willing enough to fight back, which has made it much easier for recruitment. Very Soon, probably a few months from now, we'll have close to Twenty-Thousand New Soldiers fighting in the Army of Chaos."

"That's Amazing-"

"But it's not all," Harold said, getting more excited as he kept talking. "The Automatons of Daedalus have started upgrading our ships and Siege engines, while we've counted every piece of equipment under the mountain."

"And how much do we have?"

"Well for starters, we have special Glaives and Hooked Swords, which we'll start to train Soldiers with, furthermore we have hundreds, if not thousands of new Siege weapons, boosting our previous amount of two dozen to a new level. The Soldier Automatons have also been activated, and I can say that Daedalus spent a lot of time making them. There's maybe Four Thousand of them, each two meters high and built like a tank."

"What about our navy?"

"Well, we were already told about how many Ships there are inside the cave. We have Forty Frigates, already at full upgrade Capacity, but other than that we have smaller Gunships, around a hundred of them or so. They are small but armed to the teeth. We also have transport ships, numbering in the two hundred. They are the smallest, able to carry about twenty people each, standing. There's a small cannon on board, but other than that nothing. It's made for fast beach landings, rather than naval warfare. Then, of course, we have the Titaness."

"It's amazing, how much our power just grew with this one small step."

"Yes." Harold's eyes twinkled. "But I have some other news. I've taken the liberty to send scouts into Europe."

"You did well. What have they gathered so far?"

"It seems that the Gods have helped us out by stopping the march of the Enemy. Zeus has used his master bolt to crack the very Earth, splitting Spain off of the rest of Europe. The scouts have noted that the Enemy is hard at work, trying to build a bridge, but it seems that they are cursed by Hermes, who destroys the bridge and flies away before getting caught. We still have time. I've also sent a party of a few soldiers to start building some fortifications around our landing site."

"Are we sure we want to have our last stand there?"

"Last stand? Definitely not. But we need a distraction so that our Mission works out properly."

"What would stop Tartarus from attacking our island first?"

"Tartarus might be a God, and prone to mistakes, but he's not thick. It might seem like his Army is infinite, but our Defenses are too good, and an attack by Sea would see too many losses from his side. It would be much easier to attack New York. Now there is one problem with the Gods helping us."

"What is that?"

"They've created a channel which leads to the Atlantic, and it's not guarded by a God. That was one of the main setbacks for Tartarus. His Navy was stuck in the Mediterranean, since sending it through Gibraltar would have caused the boats to be turned to dust. Heracles is not one to be messed with."

"So we're only slightly better off then?"

"I'm afraid so."

I sighed, "Well in times like this, we have to make do with what we get."

"Exactly. However, I believe we both have more important things we have to attend to, so if you don't mind, I'm going to go." Harold smiled. I nodded and he walked away.

Turning towards the Alcove, fully open ever since Jonathan first opened it, and Guarded by two of my personal guards, I nodded at them, before stepping through.

 _ **The General**_

"BUILD FASTER YOU USELESS FOOLS!" Roared Polybotes, smacking one of the Telkhines into the air, which squealed with fear, before landing on the ground with a crunch, and turning to dust. After the Capture of Poseidon, he had rejoiced at the thought of torturing the Sea God. Thus, he was incredibly angry that Tartarus had called him up from the depths to help manage the construction of the boats, and he took out his anger on the Monsters, only slowing the construction.

Ever since the Crack had appeared, it had expanded, until it was so wide that no bridge could connect the two land pieces. However many monsters worked on the construction, it was still painfully slow, seeing as how Zeus was actively destroying boats with his master bolt, and our navy had already suffered from his wrath.

As for me, I was laying in the grass of the Italian Countryside, using every bit of rest I could, knowing full well that once the boats were completed, there'd be no stopping.

"Sir?" It was Midas once again.

"What is it?" I snapped.

"We've gotten a report from the Other Army."

"What does it say?"

"They've also been hindered by Zeus. The god has cut off Spain from the Mediterranean to the Atlantic. They've tried building a bridge, but so far the Messenger of the Gods has thwarted everything."

"Tell them the plan remains unchanged."

"Yes, General."

Midas scurried away, and I sat there frowning at the sky.

"From the Mediterranean to the Atlantic, you say?" I mused to myself. "Well, we can tick Heracles off our problems list then."

I laughed at the sky, mocking it's Lord.

"You try resolving a problem, and instead create a new one."

The smile remained on my face for the rest of the day, and even Polybotes' bellowing wasn't enough to sour my expression.

 _ **Sophia**_

"Looks like the last of them are gone, out of sight," Beatrice said from the window.

"Then let's get going, we have no time to waste," I said, sliding the knife I was holding back into its holster on my ankle. "Julius, you good to go?"

He nodded sadly, strapping his helmet back on.

One of the Amazon Warriors opened the door, and we sneaked outside. There were Forty-Five of us all in all. Eighteen Amazons had survived the attack on their headquarters, including Ostia herself, and two of her bodyguards. The other warriors had been stationed at the bunker and had been oblivious to the attacking force until it was too late to act.

It was a short, fifteen-minute jog until we reached the Checkpoint, and even from far away it looked a mess. Dozens of Persian bodies were piled on the floor, gunned down by the Mortal soldiers. The demon was immune to Mortal Metals, but Persian Soldiers weren't.

The Soldier who had escorted us in the truck had died there, in the driver's seat. A spear had been left in his chest, which had pierced the truck's windscreen. A tank was burning, while a second one was already a charred husk of what it once was. Dead mortals lay on the floor, but they hadn't gone down without a fight, and the Persians bodies definitely showed that. Behind the defensive line of Modern Military Weaponry, lay the bodies of the Legionaries that were left to guard the Mini-Buses. Nobody had survived.

Among them lay the Cornicen too.

"We cannot mourn the dead. It looks like the Persians didn't stay to clean up after themselves. Probably scared that the thing that killed that demon was still around." I told everyone. "Do what small rites you have to, then we leave. It looks like the soldiers managed to clear the cars and the concrete barricades to the left of the buses, so all we have to do is get in and fuck off."

"I only see One Mini-Bus still working. The Two SUV's are fine, but the van is also gone. That's by far not enough."

"Take the Military Vehicles. They'll do for now."

The Romans lay out their dead comrades so that the cars wouldn't run them over, then they made a small prayer to the gods, before getting into the Vehicles still functional. I also muttered a small prayer to every God I could think of, knowing full well that our Journey was still only starting.

"Radio test, one, two, three, " Horatio said into the walkie-talkie. Every car reported back positive, even those in the military Truck. They had somehow found the right channel.

"Let's go," I told Julius. He stepped on the gas, driving straight into the other lane, away from Seattle. The other Vehicles followed.

We once again sat in the SUV, the only difference was that the Amazon Queen was also with us, while Horatius had gone to sit with one of the Buses.

"Are you ready for the fireworks?" Ostia asked, grinning fiercely, after five minutes of driving.

"Show the Persians what they're dealing with."

She took out a small device, with a single switch on it. Opening the cover, she put her finger to it.

Pressing down, it clicked.

Silence.

 _ **The Augur**_

"Princess Khione. Where are we?" A few minutes ago, we had been standing in a Frozen Palace, somewhere in Quebec City. We were clearly not there anymore.

"Hush, Mortal. My father patrols these parts. We do not want him to find that we are here."

"Then why did you bring us here?" I squeaked.

"It is close enough so that you can begin summoning magic, which will slowly make him lean towards your Lord, instead of the Gods. Did Tartarus not tell you this?"

"No, he did not," I grumbled.

Before I could start doing anything, something flashed in the darkness of the house.

An Iris message appeared in front of me a second later, and the face of Commander Tarik looked at me. The Rainbow was far from as colorful as I knew it to be, probably because it wasn't a Greek or Roman who was using it.

"Sir. Hello."

"I'm glad you got the Iris message to work."

"Stupid Greeks, with their weird Gods." I heard him mutter, but I ignored his comment.

"Tell me why you contacted me. I am currently in the middle of something important."

"We've searched all of Seattle, and the Queen hasn't been found. Other than that, a small detachment of Scouts I sent out have returned, with bad news."

"What bad news?"

"Since the Reinforcements failed to arrive, I sent some horsemen to check on them. They found every one of them incinerated or slashed to bits in the car park of a destroyed gas station."

"Every one of them?"

"Yes, no survivors."

"Thank you, Commander, Dis-" Before I could finish what I wanted, a shout came from Tarik's side of the Iris message.

"What is it, you idiot?" I heard Tarik mutter. A women came into sight, but I could only see the top of her head.

Whatever she whispered, it must have been surprising, for the Commander's eyes widened.

"What is it?" I asked impatiently.

The Iris message disappeared before he could say anything.

"Tarik? Tarik! Argh, Gods of Olympus. Bloody Persians, useless. If Dravin would have had good men with him, he wouldn't have died."

"Are you done?" The Goddess Asked, still calm, but I noticed she was getting twitchy.

"Yes, sorry."

"Now Draw up that Symbol of your master, here on the floor. The sooner we start, the quicker we can finish."

 _ **Sophia**_

The darkness of the night lit up, quickly followed by the boom of a city going up in flames. Nobody said anything, we just stared at it sullenly, knowing full well what we just did.

Finally, it was Ostia that broke the silence.

"Do you know which way to take?"

It took a while for Julius to reply, tearing his eyes from the rear-view mirror.

"Yeah, we're traveling to Florida."

 **"Good. I suggest we rest a bit. I'm not sure when we can get a good night's sleep next."**

 **-ServantofRagnos**


	10. The Silent Town Showdown

**_Daniel_**

"We're Done," Kronin said.

I collapsed onto the floor, and my opponent bowed, before dissipating into Chaos.

"Are... You-"

"Yes, I'm sure. Your power has grown greatly, and everything shows that." He said pointing at me.

I looked at my heaving chest, bruised, but muscled. I had a small amount of baby fat a month ago, though that had long since disappeared.

"I don't feel much stronger," I told him.

"Oh, believe me, you are. You'll notice that as soon as you fight your first battle. Remember what I taught you, and you'll defeat anything that comes against you."

"If you say so..."

"I do. Now once you leave, go to sleep. Leave the Administration for tomorrow. You won't get too many chances to sleep once you delve into the war."

"Thank you, for everything you did for me Kronin."

"Only doing what your father asked from me so many millennia ago."

"Millennia..."

"Yes. But no more questions. The Guardians of the Mountain are now completely under your control, they are no longer needed here."

I stood up and looked Kronin in his eyes.

Kronin smiled.

I closed my eyes and touched my temple. The warm embrace of Chaos wrapped around my body, and when I opened my eyes again, I was in the Grandmaster's Chambers. I hadn't slept in here since that day I met with Harold. To save time and energy, I had slept in one of the Chambers in the Mountain. It was much larger than I had thought it would be. I hardly had the time or the strength to explore it.

Two Weeks had passed since that day. Two weeks since I left Harold a letter, giving him full authority to reform the Chaos Army, Navy, and Assassins of Chaos. I was excited to see what he had done.

But that was for tomorrow. For now, sleep was all that was on my mind. My bruised body was fast at healing, but it didn't help in the short term. My body ached, and yet it felt good. Flopping onto the bed, I fell asleep quickly.

 ** _Sophia_**

I couldn't fall asleep that night, no matter how tired I was. The destruction of Seattle had burned into my mind. It was now dawn, the sky glowing a dark red.

Julius was also awake, driving beside me. He had already sacrificed so much for this quest, and yet he was still sane, not to mention willing to lead us. Behind us trailed another Mini-Bus, along with two Military Troop Transports, and a humvee, filled with the remainder of the Amazons of Seattle and the First Cohort's First Century's Legionnaires. Once the best of the best, but the battles in quick succession, only hours apart from each other, had taken a toll on the fighting force.

"So, Julius. You want to talk about anything?" I asked, looking for something to pass the time.

"Not really." He grunted.

"Fine." I huffed, turning on the Radio. Turning the dial, I tried to find some music to listen to. Instead, I found the 24/7 News Channel.

" _Attention, this is a Repeating Presidential Alert."_

Both me and Julius looked at each other with a worried frown.

 _"The City of Seattle has been destroyed with the use of Atomic Weaponry. According to current reports, the Casualties are low, as the city was previously evacuated by Military Personnel. To ensure the safety of this attack against our homeland, I have fully mobilized The Army of the United State of America. Every Highway now has multiple checkpoints assigned along its length, where a full car search will be done on each vehicle that passes through. Do not, under any circumstance, resist these searches. The soldiers are ordered to shoot anyone who fails to comply. Furthermore, Convoys will be a regular occurrence that will be seen on Highways. Please give them right of way if you come across them. Thank you for complying, and may God be with us in these hard times._

"Amazing, just what we needed," Julius muttered.

"Shh," I muttered.

" _Further News._ _The Sun Flare, which happened now nearly One and a half months ago, leaves Scientists wondering why Power can't be restored. All Across Europe, tension is high, and Riots are becoming more frequent as people remain without electricity. A Massive Group of different Ethnicities and Nationalities have banded together, crossing borders both Natural and Artificial, gathering more and more followers in the process. Two groups have now split off, one heading straight for the Pilgrim site of Vatican City, while the second continually collecting new followers. Authorities are underpowered to stop them."_

"Tartarus?" Julius asked.

"Most likely. Mortals rarely see the full picture. Mist is powerful, especially if it surrounds hundreds of thousands of monsters and multiple deities."

"Once saw Mortals pet the Chimera because they thought it was a dog. It was an interesting Quest, to say the least." Julius told me.

I snorted, picturing a fire-breathing monster looking like a cute dog.

The radio then went silent, with only a monotonous beeping.

"Seems like that's the end of it." And with that Julius turned it off.

The next few minutes went by silently until something showed up on the horizon.

"What's that?" I asked.

"Looks like one of those checkpoints they were talking about on the radio. Great." The Car started slowing down until we finally pulled up next to an Officer of some rank I didn't recognize. Two soldiers stood in front of the car, one of them showing an open palm towards us, telling us to stop.

The Officer walked over to our window, which Julius rolled down. Without asking anything the Man looked into the car and saw multiple people sleeping on the back seats. Ostia, John, Desdemona, Tristan, Susan, Robert. All fast asleep. It was a tight squeeze, but John and Susan were thin enough to fit.

"Can I help you?" Julius asked.

"I'm guessing you guys are together?" The soldier said, pointing towards the rest of our small convoy.

"Yes."

"Why are you coming this way?"

"We have to deliver a package to Florida. Special Orders."

"I'm afraid I don't believe that. Why do you have a military truck with you?"

"I said it's a Package, top-secret," Julius said.

"Right. Let me check a few things." He looked at me, and frowned, before walking away.

"I'm not liking this," I muttered.

"Something's gonna go wrong." Julius agreed.

The officer started talking with the other soldiers, who were looking at a small tablet, they were frowning towards our Military Vehicles and our SUV, at me in particular.

After a few seconds, the Officer walked back.

"Can you show me some sort of Identification?"

Julius looked at me.

"Umm." He hesitated.

Without asking again, the man pulled a pistol from its holster. The two soldiers standing at the blockade also pointed their Assault Rifles towards the Vehicles.

"Get out of the Vehicle. Now!"

"Wait, what? Why?" Julius said, putting his hands up.

"The vehicles at the back have the same License Plate as those that were called in destroyed in Seattle. Furthermore, you are transporting a Criminal who is on the FBI's List of Terrorists."

All of a sudden Rebecca awoke, startling all of us.

"A monster," Rebecca whispered. I looked at Julius, who didn't look too happy. He had heard it too.

"GET OUT OF THE CAR!" The Soldier Roared.

"SIR! Something's coming. It's another vehicle."

"I don't care. Help me get these scum out of the car."

"Wait, I'm getting out," Julius said.

"Sarge!"

"WHAT?" The sergeant roared, glancing at the two soldiers. Their Guns were wavering, and they were looking at something at the back. I couldn't see anything through the side mirror, seeing how it was still fairly dark.

"It looks bigger than-"

A horn sounded from the back of our convoy. A Scream crackled on the Radio.

Before the Officer could react to the noise, our Hummer flew sideways into the Checkpoint, taking out the entire thing, and exploding into smithereens. The two Soldiers had disappeared into dark patches on the side of the Armoured Car.

"Wuh-" The officer was cut off by Julius, who opened the door and kicked it hard, smashing it into the Officer, who fell onto his backside.

A Bellow rang out, and without thinking Twice, Julius stepped on the Gas, swerving past the wreckage and the Bodies of Mortals and Demigods. The opened door snagged on something, and it broke off. Another scream cut through the radio, followed by an Audible crumpling of Aluminium as a Troop Transport was crushed by the unknown monster behind us.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT?" Roared the normally calm Amazonian Queen. Everyone had been shaken awake at the sound of the explosion.

"God damn it, it's the Minotaur!" Julius said, grabbing the Microphone, and shouting orders into it. "Everyone! Split up, we'll discuss where to meet up once things calm. Centurion out." He hung the microphone back as multiple replies came in, acknowledging the order.

After a few minutes, Julius eased off the Pedal.

"It's gone after our Mini-Bus. We're good for now. Sophia, find the closest town we can go to meet up."

"Right away." I could see Julius gripping the wheel tightly.

I grabbed a GPS and looked at it for a few minutes.

"Well?" He asked impatiently.

"There," I said, pointing at the Map. "Nampa."

Julius grabbed the Microphone once more, and relayed the information, before laying back into his seat.

"That's a half-hour drive."

"It's a big enough town, we can hold out there for a bit before continuing."

"Fine by me. We need some Gas anyway. Running low here. Could also use a coffee"

We all lay back, knowing that we had just lost two of our Vehicles, and possibly a third one. There were probably thirty of us remaining all in all.

 _ **Viscount**_

"Come On! Hurry up!" I shouted, making the Soldiers packing up the remainder of the camp walk a bit faster. Our Sponsors had been quick about gathering together every vehicle they could afford to help with our plans. In the matter of a few hours, a number of Trucks, Buses and even a few transport planes had arrived. From then on it took no time to pack in the important things.

Citizens were only bringing things that were necessary. All Food items, we were taking with us and anything that could be used as a weapon was also coming with us. The things that the enemy could use, but we couldn't take was to be burned, including Camp Jupiter. The Actual city would be spared, seeing as how it would be easier to return to a trashed, but half-intact city, than one burned to the ground.

Most Citizens had already left for Camp Half-Blood.

One problem still remained, and it was an annoying one. Terminus.

The god had been offended when we had told him the Plan, and he wouldn't move no matter what we said. Ever since the Greek Ship, the Argo II had fired on New Rome, Terminus had held a grudge against the Greeks, even though we were technically now allies.

"Any luck?" I asked Severus.

"No. He won't budge." He grunted.

"I AM NOT LEAVING THIS PLACE TO BE RAVAGED BY SAVAGES!" The God roared, popping into existence beside me.

I sighed inwardly. The Senate had been easy to convince once word of the Persian Army got to us. The god of boundries was much harder.

"Well we're doing just that, and I advise you to do the same. The civilians will still need defense, and I'm sure the Athena Parthenos will happily coexist with you. The City is doomed, whether we stay to fight, or no."

"YOU ARE SAYING I AM NOT GOOD ENOUGH DEFENSE?" The God roared, nearly toppling over.

"Terminus, we've already gone over this. Get in the Truck, and we will take you to Camp Half-Blood. If you don't come, we'll leave you here for the Persians. They don't care about sacrilege. I'm sure you'll be able to hold out against a few thousand, but this army is much too big for even a god."

"Wait, what?" He frowned.

"They'll probably destroy your statues, maybe take them back to their base as decoration. You'll be a part of their war spoil."

"Those savages will not plunder me!" He exclaimed indignantly.

"Without the armies of Rome to defend against their army, they definitely will. And we won't be staying. So choose. The Greeks or the Persians?"

The god frowned for a second.

"I will not work alongside the Greeks though. That is asking too much."

"You don't need to," I said, smiling.

"Then I'm going. These talks are over." He erupted into a puff of yellow smoke.

I wiped the sweat off of my brow, before looking at the buses leaving one by one, their target Rhode Island. There were hundreds.

The Fauns hadn't returned since we had rebuilt the city, so we didn't need as many buses as we first thought. The Lares had also disappeared, from one day to the next. With the power of the gods diminishing, they had gone into hiding, fearing for their own existence.

One car was still waiting.

"Sir?" Severus questioned. The black SUV was already running, and it was all but full with my personal guard.

"Yes, sorry. You have the device primed?"

"It's already been set off. It'll take a few minutes for the flames to light the Greek Fire. You sure you want the City spared?"

"I doubt the Persians will destroy buildings that can give accommodation to their armies. Also, we need someplace to return to once this war is won." I told him.

"True enough."

"Okay, let's go then. We have a long way to drive. "

"Right away!"

 _ **Sophia**_

"Well thank the Gods we arrived," Julius said, looking at the Fuel Gauge. It was on the red and had been for the past five minutes. The engine was on the last dregs of fuel we had.

"Looks like the others have also done so," I commented.

It looked like the Other SUV and the Final Troop Transport had arrived safely. They had already gotten out of their own cars, and they looked as if they were waiting for us. Only the Mini-Bus that the Minotaur had run after was missing.

We came to a stop next to them.

"Sir," Horatius said from the rolled-down window.

"We need gas," Julius told him.

"Same with the other two."

"Shit," Julius muttered. "How much money do we have with us?"

"Our Van that had carried our extra supplies had been crushed by the Monster, and nothing could be salvaged. Our money was in there too."

"We definitely don't have enough on us to get us what we need." Julius turned towards the Queen of the Amazons. "You have a credit card or anything we can use?"

"You think my first thought when trying to escape the Headquarters was bringing money with me?" She questioned, raising an eyebrow.

Julius huffed, turning to me.

"You guys?"

"We have a couple of dollars on us, but it's not that much," John said. "Our questing gear was mostly in that Van too. Including the Cash."

"I have some cash, maybe two hundred dollars. Is that good?" Tristan piped up.

"Really?" Julius asked.

"Yeah. I had emptied the Cash from the taxi before jumping out."

"And once again, you've come to our aid," I said, smiling.

"Just give me the money. We won't be budging from here, that's for sure. I'll take some of the lads with us to bring back a few Jerry Cans." Julius said, grabbing the stack of bills.

"What should we do until then?" Robert asked.

"You, you're going to come with us boy," Julius smirked. "Girls can buy all of us some coffee from that Starbucks. We need something to keep us going. Just get whatever costs the least."

"Sure."

We all got out of the Car. All the boys marched off, Horatius looking at a map. It was a Girls party then.

I looked around at my surroundings. The Town looked deserted, but it was still dawn, so that was something we could chalk it up to.

Beatrice came over to us, along with three other Amazon warriors.

"Some coffee sounds good." She said, and we all nodded, walking towards the Starbucks. On the way there, I spotted a Wanted poster, something I had never seen before in real life, only in movies.

It was a warrant for the arrest of me, Daniel and Nico. His picture was the same I had seen in the Newspaper, while mine and Nico's was a sketch. I ripped off the poster and threw it into the nearest bin.

Once entering the Starbucks, we realized it was just as dead as the Town. The Barista raised an eyebrow like it was surprising to have so many people in here at once. A slight silvery glow surrounded her, but that was probably my eyes playing tricks on me.

"Can I take your order?" She asked.

"Yeah, we'd like-" I quickly counted how many there were of us. "Twenty-Seven Freshly Brewed Coffees. Grande. We'd also like some scones, those look nice." I said, looking at the glass display case.

She didn't even ask what names to write on the cups. There was no point. The place was empty, even though it was seven in the morning.

"With a Group discount, That'll be Forty Dollars." The Barista said once she was done.

Then I remembered, Julius hadn't even given me any cash.

"Uhh."

The Barista frowned.

"Wait, I think we have enough. Let's put it together. I have Twelve Dollars." I said, taking all of my remaining money out of my pocket.

"Six here," Susan said.

"Four."

"Ten."

"Fourteen."

"Okay, that's enough. Thank you, Ladies. Enjoy your coffee." She smiled, before closing the cash register and handing us our coffees. Rebecca pocketed the change.

We walked outside, placing the tray of coffees and the bag of scones onto the hood of the SUV. Now, all we had to do was wait.

Time passed quickly, but the boys were nowhere to be seen, even after ten minutes.

We had already drunk our coffees and eaten a few scones.

Then we heard it. The clunk of metal and the roar of an engine. A black Mini-Bus skidded out of a Junction onto the main road. It was one of ours!

The Entire Chassis of the Bus was crumpled, and a very interesting hole was on the top of the bus.

"YEAH!" Susan yelled upon seeing the Vehicle. We all started cheering.

Upon noticing us, the Driver started honking tunelessly.

We didn't even have time to react when a double-headed axe smashed into its side.

The Mini-Bus flew off of the road, into the nearest building, which promptly collapsed onto it.

We stood there shocked, the cheers dying in our throats.

Nobody should have been able to survive that, but two soldiers did. They had jumped out of the Vehicle and were now running towards us as fast as they could.

We dropped everything to get into some sort of formation, grabbing weapons from our Vehicles.

A loud bellow rang out in the quiet town, and a massive creature entered our line of sight. It's bottom half wore a metal Skirt, while its top half was bare, and coated with shaggy brown fur. Two Horns rose from its head, easily making the beast three meters high.

The Minotaur ignored us, walking over to the ruined bus instead, and grabbing its axe. Then it found us interesting.

"OH SHIT!" I heard Julius yell, and very soon we were joined by the boys, interlocking shields. John and two Amazons were firing arrows at the Minotaur, but with every hit, it only seemed to get angrier.

Meanwhile, the monster was slowly walking over to us, taking its time. Savouring every moment. As it drew closer, I noticed something glinting on its face. It was a golden nosering, reflecting the light of the sun.

We were a sorry sight, but we weren't done with fighting quite yet. I wouldn't die here, in the middle of nowhere. The wait for it to get close was agonizingly long. We had made a shield wall out of the crumpled shields the Romans and Amazons Still had, but it looked as protective as a piece of paper. The Two soldiers who had escaped hid behind us, breathing heavily.

It was now only a few meters away, getting ready to swing. We all held our breaths, but the strike never came.

A Silver blur appeared in the air, flying straight towards the Minotaur, then another, and another. Each hit with a wet thwack and the beast staggered for a moment, roaring at the sky. It tried swinging at us, but there was hardly any power in it, and the shields deflected it.

A dozen more arrows struck it along its body, until it finally mooed weakly, before collapsing to its knees and turning to dust.

"What-"

"HALT!" Came a voice from behind us. We heard the stretch of a bowstring, and that stopped us from turning around.

"Who are you?" Julius asked.

"We are those that saved your asses, now look at me and tell me what you are doing here. Romans and Greeks have rarely worked together, even as allies, not to mention the amazons."

I turned around first.

A Girl, no older than fifteen stood alone in the street, holding a taut bow in her hands. She had an aura of Silver light around her, whilst wearing a Chiton, also glowing silver. A Silver Headband was holding her Black hair in a ponytail, and lightning-bolt shaped earrings hung from her ears.

"We're on a quest of sorts," I said.

"Oh really? You better speak up. Rarely does the Minotaur attack a normal group of demigods. Especially in times like this."

"Okay, okay," I said, trying to calm her. "We need to take her-" I pointed at Ostia, "To Florida. She is the Queen of the Amazons. My name is Sophia Whitefield from Camp Half-Blood, and I know who people are too. The Hunters of Artemis."

"I see." The Girl whistled, before letting go of the arrow she had nocked. Silver-Wreathed Girls appeared from buildings, wearing either Chitons or normal clothes. I noticed our Starbucks Barista Walk out of the shop we had just been to.

"That was a good Meet and Greet Session." The Girl said, looking at us. "Follow me."

"Only if you tell us who you are, Miss," Julius said. The Hunters all nocked arrows, but the Girl, who was most probably their leader, held up her hand.

 **"Very well. My name is Thalia Grace, Daughter of Zeus, and Lieutenant of Artemis. Welcome to our Forward Outpost."**


	11. The Preparations for War

We arrived at a campsite, set up right outside of Nampa.

The Main Tent was slightly larger than the rest, which was where we were headed. Most of our surviving companions dropped their stuff as soon as they could and sat down to rest. Julius, Horatius, Ostia, Beatrice, me, John and Rebecca all followed Thalia.

Sitting down inside the Main Tent, Thalia looked at us.

"So, now that we're in calmer settings, tell me. What is your quest, and why are you here, of all places?"

We told her everything, from the arrival of Daniel to Camp, to what happened at the Military Checkpoint. The only details I left out was that about Jenny. That was something I wanted to discuss in private with her, as a sudden change in the topic wouldn't be good right now.

I knew who Thalia Grace was, all Demigods from Camp Half-Blood did. She had been the Second-in-Command of Artemis ever since the Second Titan War.

After our Alliance with the Romans, the Hunters of Artemis distanced themselves further and further from the Greeks. Once the Heroes of the Argo II died out, they cut off all communications.

"I see," Thalia said, massaging her temple. "It seems believable. I'm sure the Greeks aren't just here because of this reason though. You're looking for Jenny Jackson."

"How did you-"

"After living for this long, I know what Demigods will do to save friends. Hell, I've had quite a few friends that would've done just this. We weren't exactly too subtle either. We're sorry for Kidnapping her."

"Why did you do it?" I said, narrowing my eyes.

"She's got connections to people even she doesn't realize. Artemis ordered us to get her no matter what. A war is brewing, and rules are getting upturned."

"But where is she?"

"Now that's why we're camped here. A small group of Hunters, along with her, went on an expedition to find a few symbols. Nothing important. We've lost all connection with them, and there's definitely trouble brewing in the air."

"Where did you send her?" I asked, my expression darkening.

"A Small City in Oklahoma. Tulsa I think it was. Why?"

"God damn it." I closed my eyes, knowing what that meant. "We have to get them back as soon as possible," I told her, trying to remain calm.

"We're already working on it." She told me.

"For How Long?"

"The Last Week or so."

"WE HAVE TO GET THEM THEN!" I Yelled, shocking even John.

"We're doing the best we can. We'll find them eventually." Thalia said, keeping her cool.

"You don't understand. Tulsa is in Tornado Alley, no?"

"I believe it is..." She frowned, not knowing where I was going with this.

"You know about Tartarus, and that he attacked Hades?"

"Yes, we've been told by Artemis."

"When he raised the monsters from himself, he didn't leave out one of the most powerful beings. I believe you saw it's second rising and falling."

"Typhon." Her eyes widened.

"He's still weak from his battle with the Gods, so much so that the Wind Gods have been able to keep him in the location he rose. The location where the Gods have been venting his rage for Millenia."

"I see. I'm guessing that's Tornado Alley."

"Yes."

"How weak is it?"

"I mean, the wind gods are holding it in, so pretty weak. But I doubt we'd give it much to think about if it sees us."

"Why would it attack us? We're hardly the strongest being in there."

Rebecca stepped forward.

"The Monster is angered by its defeat and wishes to destroy the gods more than ever. His assaults on the Wind Gods fail again and again, but once we're in there, we'll be the closest thing to a God that he'll sense. It won't take long for him to arrive, but I doubt we'd survive close to him for long.

Thalia paled and sat back down in her Campaign Chair.

"You are correct then, we have no time to waste."

"Hold on, wait a second." Julius interrupted, standing up from his seat.

Thalia raised an eyebrow. Two Huntresses pressed Knives to the neck of Julius. He stopped, a bead of sweat trickling down his nose. He held up his hands.

The lieutenant of the Hunters held up her palm, signaling for the two Huntresses to stand down. They followed their orders.

"Speak, Centurion." She smiled.

"I've got a different Quest that still needs to be done. I've lost plenty of good men trying to take the Queen to Florida, and I don't wish to get off that path."

"What you have vehicles will hardly keep you alive for long. Tartarus has called most monsters to him, but some of the stronger ones stayed. You saw the Minotaur, and I doubt others will be far. I'm surprised that you didn't bring attention to yourself sooner."

"And if we come with you? I don't want to lose anyone else today."

"I assure you, that no harm will come to us. Some of my hunters and I will join you, and together we'll head over to Tulsa. From there you can continue your journey to Florida, or help us find them and then Continue the Journey.

After thinking for a bit, Julius agreed.

"We don't have any time to waste, it's going to take us too long to reach the place by foot. We have to ask for help." Thalia told us.

"Not the Sun Guy, please." A Hunter muttered beside me.

"We have to Katrin, we have no choice."

"Wait, Apollo is back?" I asked, a glimmer of hope in it.

"No, not quite. He has a... Replacement. You'll see."

Without saying anything else, Thalia walked outside, with us following behind.

 _ **Daniel**_

"Harold," I said, walking up to my second-in-command.

"Ah, Sir. It's good to meet you again." He smiled, looking at me from top to bottom. I was wearing a Camp Half-Blood T-shirt, and some blue jeans. He raised an eyebrow when he noticed that I wasn't wearing any weapons. I smiled at his expression. I didn't need weapons to feel safe now, though they were always close to me.

My Belt had a buckle made of chaos metal, and a ring was on my finger, made from the same material.

"Well, we didn't have much time. Both of us were busy. I'm guessing you had more on your plate than me."

"I don't know, Sir. It's hard to decide. I mean you've changed a lot within this month."

"It wasn't easy, that's true, but I still stand by the fact that you had much more to do."

"Very well." He said, leading me outside of the town walls. A few hundred meters from them, a Podium had been set up. Daedalus and his two sons already stood next to it, all of them looking at me with smiles on their face.

"What do you have planned?" I asked. Then I figured it out.

"A Speech,"

"The soldiers need to hear something from you," Harold told me. "I decided to reform uniforms, weapons, tools... Everything we can think of. You'll notice that quite quickly. Daedalus helped a lot with it, making some small changes to the existing Armor according to what we needed."

"Okay, call them here."

"At once." He told me, waving his arms at the walls. A few seconds later a horn blared, closely followed by dozens more.

"I'll take my place," I said.

"Sorry, I'm not one to give you tips on your fashion, but I think you should be in something less casual. It'll be better if they see you as an Assassin, and not as a Demigod from Camp Half-Blood."

"Oh right, yeah. You're right." I closed my eyes, and I felt the warm touch of Chaos.

Harold Gasped.

When I opened my eyes once again, I was wearing my Robes, along with all of my weapons.

"How-"

"I learned a lot."

"Well, I can see that." He chuckled. "But let's talk about those later."

I heard the clunk of the Gate and walked up to the podium.

In the matter of a few minutes, I started to feel the ground rumble.

The first soldiers cleared the hills, and I breathed sharply. Beside me, Harold was smiling.

It seemed never-ending.

Five Clearly Distinguishable Groups marched next to each other, Lead by a smaller group at the very Front.

Each soldier wore a cloak, but the Color was different every dozen ranks or so. At the Front of each on, a man carried a banner with Roman Numerals on them.

"LEGIONS HALT!" Roared a Voice, which I realized was the newly appointed General Emilio Reyes. He was in the smaller group of soldiers. A row of Twelve Dark Purple Cloaked Soldiers stood behind him, followed by three dozen Light Purple Cloaks.

General Reyes himself wore a golden cloak, and his Armor had Golden markings on it. His helmet still had the Golden Plume, though the helmet design looked different.

"That's your symbol," Harold muttered into my ear. He was right. The Golden cloak had a design on it that stood out starkly against the Gold Color.

It was a phoenix, holding two swords, one in each claw. Its tail was black, and above it was a Black Crown.

As for the Legions, they were a power to behold. At the front stood the Centurions, wearing Silver Cloaks, surrounded by the same light purple cloaked soldiers that the General Had.

After two ranks of Purple Cloaks, came the Red cloaked ones.

In their hands were two-meter long glaives, along with an upgraded version of the Shields I had seen in the battle for Wilnos. It looked less like a Roman Shield, and more like something from a Fantasy Novel. The Face of the shield was made up of small black scales of Chaos Metal, it's length covering the soldiers from neck to ankles, it's width spanning the entire soldier, and some of the next one too. They seemed heavy, but the soldiers weren't struggling. The glaives didn't look out of place either, it's head decorated with beautiful swirls of Chaos Metal, ending in a spike. Next to the spike were two bardiche-like head. By the looks of it, the weighting was good enough for it to be used in a shield wall with one hand, or with two in single-combat.

On both sides of their hip hung swords, one longer than the other.

Their Armor Looked familiar, and yet slightly different. They wore gloves that looked like black leather, and it blended with the Actual armor, covering every inch of their body. The Actual armor was made out of scales instead of plates. It seemed like they were incredibly mobile in them. The helmet connected seamlessly to the rest of the Armor, and they also wore a facemask which left all but the eyes, nose, and mouth unprotected.

The Blue cloaks behind them were the Archers of the Legion. Instead of shields, they had bows in their hand, nearly the same size as the Glaives, along with two Quivers on their back, and two short swords at their hip, similar to what the Red Cloaks wore. Their armor was lighter at first glance, the joints less armored.

A smaller group of soldiers came after the Archers. Their Cloaks were Yellow.

Each one looked Heavily Armored, probably cause they were. They held a shield in one hand and carried a large battle-axe in the other. A Broadsword was strapped to their back, and they also carried the same swords the Red cloaks did. The shields looked different from what the Red Cloaks carried.

Taking a closer look at the Purple Cloaks, I noticed they carried weapons that were similar to both Red and Blue cloaks. The armor was a cross between the yellow cloaks and the Red cloaks, while they held a shield with my logo on it, along with a glaive of their own. An Assassin's sword and a short battle-axe were strapped to their waist, and a short bow and a quiver hung from their back.

I realized that the rumbling hadn't stopped.

Hundreds of Cavalrymen arrived behind each Legion, Green cloaks billowing behind them.

Never before had I seen horses on the Island, not to mention Horse-riders.

However, they were too far away for me to make out properly. I noticed a glaive-type weapon towering over the rider, and a quiver on the side of the horse. As for the horse, I did notice the Armor it wore. My guess was that it was also made from scales.

"FIRST LEGION." Roared the First Legion, all of them saluting at once.

This happened for each Legion. Each of them was more than Two Thousand people strong. Already there were at least Ten-Thousand soldiers standing before me.

A metallic clanking came forth from the top of the hills, and in came the Automatons. They were covered in black plates of Chaos metal, though parts of their Celestial Bronze Body glinted from the joints. Their equipment was different every few Units. Massive Two-Headed Bardiche, Maces with spiked balls the size of the Automatons head, and a weapon I could not name. A wooden pole, with a chain attached to its top, and from the chain dangled a double-headed axe blade.

They didn't salute, just stood there, easily more than a thousand of them.

The beat of drums followed after the Clunking of Automatons fell silent. Very soon, close to a thousand soldiers were marching into view. The Assassins had arrived.

No more were they wearing cloaks. They gave protection, but all in all, it was still cloth.

Now, they had specially made armor, that had even smaller scales on it. They walked in it like in the cloaks they had worn beforehand. A light cloak was draped over each one, marking them according to their rank among the Assassins. The Cloak clearly had weapons hidden under it.

In front of the Normal Assassins, A distinctively different colored group of Assassins walked, The Black armor decorated with the Color Orange.

The Phoenix Squad.

My personal guard, the Guardians of the Mountain came last. Thirty-Two of them. They had their full silver armor on, the black plumes flew from their helmets. They also held glaives, but along with that, they had two curved swords on their back, a quiver at their hip, filled with short arrows. No bow though, instead they had small crossbows hidden under their forearms.

They stopped right in front of me, before saluting.

A rumbling came next, along with the audible creak of wheels. The Siege weaponry was next to arrive. There was so much more compared to the last time I had seen Siege Weapons, that I couldn't even begin to fathom what each new machine was capable of doing.

Ballistae, Scorpions, Onagers, and cannons were a few I could make out, but they had stopped the furthest away, so I couldn't make out some of the other ones.

More marching, but this time, it was only audible, the ground didn't shake anymore.

At least another two thousands of soldiers walked over the hill this time, but they wore cloaks of Orange and dark blue.

All orange cloaks Carried Muskets, with two Swords crossed over their back. Their Armor reminded me of the Archers, though I could see a large pouch on their waist.

The Dark Blue cloaked soldiers, they carried crossbows, with two quivers full of Bolts, and the same two swords crossed upon their own back.

While I had been watching the Army assemble, the Navy had done the same behind me. The Seven Frigates Previously seen were nothing compared to what was spread out around the port. At the very center was the Titaness, my Capital Ship.

Yet more rumbling, but this time, confusion replaced the smile on Harold's face.

Soldiers in gold and black dotted Armor came marching down the slope, lead by someone carrying a staff topped with a Phoenix. Each soldier carried two Short swords on their back and in their hands, they held a staff with a large sword blade on its top end.

"Jonathan," I muttered, smiling.

"The Temple Guardians," Harold said to himself.

They stopped at the very back, and then it was incredibly quiet.

I looked at Harold, who nodded.

Before talking, I wetted my lips, and the words came flooding out.

 **"BRETHREN. TODAY, IT IS FINALLY TIME. WE. TAKE. THIS. FIGHT. TO. THEM!"**

Everyone cheered in unison.

 **"NEVER HAS ANYONE SEEN A FINER ARMY IN THE HISTORY OF MAN. TARTARUS HIMSELF WILL TREMBLE BEFORE OUR NEW-FOUND MIGHT. I PROMISE YOU, BROTHERS, THAT NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS IN THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE, THE BATTLES WE WILL RAGE AGAINST THE ENEMY WILL BE UNFORGOTTEN FOR GENERATIONS. SO LET IT BE KNOWN TO ANYONE WHO WAS IN DOUBT OF OUR POWER BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER WEAK."**

More cheering, nearly drowning out my own voice.

" **THEY ATTACKED US. ATTACKED OUR LOVED ONES. THAT IS SOMETHING THEY CAN NOT GET AWAY WITH. WE WILL SHOW THEM THE POWER OF CHAOS."**

Every soldier started either stomping their foot or smacking their shield. So loud was it, that I could feel the ground shake underneath me, more than ever.

 **"NOW GET READY FOR WE - WE. MARCH. FOR. WAR."**

I looked at Harold, who smiled at me.

 _ **Sophia**_

We stood outside the Camp of the Hunters, only twenty-four of us left from the quest. Beside me stood Thalia, her black hair tied back in a ponytail, looking at her watch.

Surrounding us were ten other Hunters, all looking angrily at the sky.

"Where is he?" Thalia muttered. Only ten minutes ago, she had let loose a pigeon, whispering something into its ear beforehand. The Pigeon had flown straight towards the sun.

"Maybe it's burnt up?" Robert offered, getting a few angry glances from the Hunters of Artemis.

The sun looked the same.

"Aha, there he is," Thalia said.

I shaded my eyes, looking towards the sun. It did seem to get brighter a bit.

"Don't look at him while he lands, or you'll go blind," Thalia Warned, and we instantly looked away.

I felt the sun burn brighter and brighter, searing my skin. Then it was gone.

"Well, hello there ladies." Said a male voice, followed by the slamming of a Car Door.

I looked up to see a tall man come striding towards us. He looked incredibly handsome, otherworldly in fact. He had perfect abs, and it could be clearly seen, for he wore a Chiton.

"Don't even try, Titan," Thalia Growled, stopping the Titan in his tracks.

She then sighed. "Demigods, this is Helios."

He grinned at us, and I felt a weird feeling in my chest.

Susan pinched my arm.

I looked at her angrily.

"Handsome gods work like charm speak. Try ignoring him." She whispered, before turning to face the Titan again.

"Helios, we need you to take us somewhere," Thalia said.

His grin turned into a frown in an ugly way.

"Is this what Apollo would have done?" He asked.

"Yes," Thalia said, without hesitation.

"Fine." He stomped back to his Ferrari and put his hand onto it. The Ferrari Glowed for a second, making everyone look away, and then it was gone, replaced with a Bus.

"Get in." He muttered, and one by one, we got in. There was space for all of us. "And where do you ladies and gents want to go?"

"Tulsa."

"Fine by me." He stomped on the gas pedal, and we were speeding up into the sky.

"We'll get there in a few minutes," He said.

"How come you're the Sun God, I thought you retired," Robert asked.

"Sun Titan." He corrected with a sigh. "And frankly, I don't know, Son of Hephaestus. With Apollo gone Zeus kind of forced me back into this job. I was so happy in retirement. Girls, Parties, Ambrosia to last for a lifetime, anything that a God, like me, could want. Then boom, I'm back in the Sun Chariot, except times have changed, and the horses aren't needed anymore. The few friends I had are gone, probably enjoying _their_ retirement." He sighed. "It's lonely work."

I suddenly felt bad for the Titan. The Silence was quickly broken by the Titan.

"We're gonna land in a few seconds. Get-" The Entire bus lurched to a stop in mid-air, which would have sent us flying, if not for the seatbelts.

"What are you doing Helios?" Boomed a voice.

"Zephyrus." He laughed. "Hello, Old Friend."

A man appeared from thin air, floating a few inches off of the ground, Big bushy wings behind him.

"I thought you retired." The God of the West wind said, "And why are you riding with Demigods?" He questioned, looking at us.

"While Apollo is Gone, I'm taking his place. Zeus's Orders. Those back there are the Hunters of Artemis, they asked for some transport. I'm to do what Apollo would have done. He would have done this, so I'm doing it."

"You know what's in front of you?"

"Yeah, Tornado Alley. Lots of rogue winds."

"It's not just that anymore, it's now a prison for a Giant."

"You mean..."

"Typhon."

"How are you keeping him here? He isn't exactly in the same category as a god, or really a Titan."

"He's still weak from his defeat from the Second Titan War. That's helped us a lot."

"Ah I see, well, will you let us pass?"

"If you wish to die, or be crushed, feel free to go. But be aware, I cannot let you back out again. We were less careful a few months ago, but he's gained a lot of strength since then. You can go in, but not come out. Not from the Air at least."

I heard Helios gulp.

"We're going in there," Thalia said.

"It's your deathwish lady," Zephyrus said. "In that case, good luck."

He disappeared with a pop, and Helios Shrugged, before starting the Bus again, and slowly rolling through an invisible barrier of air, before continuing at full speed.

"And... We're here." He said a few seconds later, landing the Bus close to the town of Tulsa. "Be quick about it."

Quickly getting off of the Mini-Bus we looked around.

In the distance, storm clouds were gathering.

"Let's go, before it's too late," Thalia told us, before we all ran towards the town, knowing full well what those Storm Clouds brought with them.

Death.

 _ **Daniel**_

"So Harold Guide me through the Reforms, quickly. Daedalus you can help." I said, standing in the Meeting Room with the Leaders of the Island.

"We've made the Soldiers form into Legions, one Legion Containing Two thousand Eight-Hundred soldiers, not counting the Commanding Officer and the Twenty-four Praetorians. One thousand Infantry Units, another thousand Archers, Five Hundred Horsemen and three hundred Heavy Infantry per Legion. Each Legion of Foot Soldiers, not counting the Heavy Infantry and Praetorians, can be Split into 20 Cohorts, Each one containing Fifty Archers and Fifty Infantrymen. Every Infantry and Archer group has a Commanding officer, which are the Centurions now. Each of them is marked with a small phoenix over their heart." Harold Started.

"The Armor and Equipment Have been made similarly with each unit type, yet they have small differences to better fit them. The Scales are better than plates, allow more mobility, and they spread the shock of an attack over a big area. The Shields are made so that they interlock perfectly, and they contain an extra shield length, which can be released with the press of the button. That way, the shields can protect more when used overhead." Daedalus Said.

"That function plays an important role in the improved Shield wall which we trained everyone in. The First wall of Infantrymen have their shields face forwards, and behind them is a second row, who, with the help of the extensions can cover the top of the First and Second row. After the Second Row, we have a line of Archers, then a Line of Infantrymen again, and it goes on until the Cohort has no more units. This way, the Infantrymen Can cover the Archers, and still allow them to fire from between the Ranks if the need arises. The Glaives given to each soldier will bristle from the front, stopping any charge in its tracks. With a quick horn blow, the archers retreat, and the soldiers can reform so that the sides, back, or both are covered."

"Amazing work. What of the Specialized units?"

"The Orange Cloaked Soldiers are the Musketmen, trained with Special Muskets. There are Eight-Hundred of them, and they can pierce through Literally anything. The Dark Blue Cloaked Units are Crossbowmen, One and a Half-Thousand of them. They have Repeating Crossbows, which cancels the need for a long and hard reload."

"The Automatons, while they have Strong Armor in General, Have been equipped with Heavy Plates of Chaos Metal, Apart from the Caterpillar Tracks, they could pass for Tanks. They hold a number of weapons that are perfect for Automaton Strength. A charge of all Two thousand of them can Easily Break anything in their path."

"And the Siege Engines?"

"I've created many new Siege Engines, however talking through the use of each one would take forever, so let's just say they are perfect for what we'll need them in the next few weeks and months. In Open battle, they are slow and hard to defend, but for the defensive purposes we need right now, they excel at it."

"The Assassins?"

"They'll Be wherever they need to be, nothing has really changed about them, except for the battle armor. There are Eight-Hundred and Sixty-Eight of them. The Phoenix Legion will be coming with me to Sardinia."

Then I raised an eyebrow at Jonathan.

"The Temple Guards?" He asked. I nodded, and he continued, "After much deliberation with the Oracle, we have come to the conclusion that the Duties of the Temple Guard can be overlooked right now, therefore you have two hundred and sixty Elite Guards at your service."

"Thank you. To all of you, for your hard work."

"We have more than Two hundred ships, and if we count the Crew of the Ships and the Siege Engines, we're taking more than Twenty-Thousand Soldiers with us."

"Very good. Do you have any news from the Encampment being built by the Scouts."

"While you were training, We sent a few hundred Worker Automatrons to help out, and recently we've gotten the word that it's nearly built. You'll be surprised to see what they've done in this amount of time. Without needing sleep, a lot of work can be done." Daedalus finished.

"I'm looking forward to it."

Daedalus then looked at me.

"Sir, I have one request though, which I hope you can fulfill."

"I think we'll be able to do it. What's the Request?"

"You'll be Close to Rome when you travel to Sardinia, and I ask you to look for a Workshop, hidden for many millennia now. They Contain some Blueprints that I could really use."

"Where is this Workshop?

"If I remember correctly It's in the Pantheon, built by Marcus Agrippa. It's under the Statue of the Virgin Mary, Under the Resting Place of Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino. You've got a Son of Hephaestus in the Phoenix Legion If I'm correct, he'll know how to unlock the many locks of the place."

"Alright, we'll do it."

"Thank you."

"Now, to work gentlemen. Get the Soldiers to board the Ships, and we'll be off. First, we'll land at the Fortress, and then we'll carry on from there, on the Titaness. I'll Leave General Reyes in command of the Defenses. Try and hold out until we return."

"Will try my best." He said grimly.

 **"Good, let's be off then," I said, clapping my hands together.**


	12. The Lost God

**Sophia**

"Where should we start?" John asked Thalia.

"Wherever you want to go, do it quickly. Those look bad." Helios said, picking at a fleck of dirt on the Mini-Bus, but briefly pointing at the Clouds of Death.

"I wonder where she could've gone?" Thalia said.

"This place isn't so big. There's enough of us to search through it."

"I'll take half of the Cohort. Horatius and Septia, you take the other half. Greeks make another group, Amazons do the same, and Hunters go wherever." Julius said.

"Sounds good. Take these, we can signal each other." Thalia said, throwing each group leader a Horn. "Give it a blow if you find something."

With a quick discussion, we decided who would go which way, and then we were off. Just me and my team from Camp Half-Blood, except for Malcolm, but he was in a place much safer than we were.

 **Viscount**

"PILA!" I yelled, and the entire line shook as hundreds of Pila arced through the air, hitting the Charging line of Persians. They faltered, but it was too late for them. The Remainder of them fell over or stumbled, and the Front row of soldiers took their chance and finished the few hundred Persians still alive.

Only a few hours after starting our journey across America, we had spotted Enemies on the Horizon. A smaller Vanguard of around Five Hundred Persians had seen us, and we had decided to Leave behind two cohorts of Soldiers as Rearguard, myself included.

Two of our Soldiers had died, but the operation had been a success.

"Let's get out of here before more arrive."

"That's a good idea." Centurion Mary said, sheathing her sword.

I looked around for the Greek Guy, Malcolm. He was still alive.

His wound was bad, but he had begged to fight with us. I had let him do so, knowing that people that determined wouldn't be stopped by me declining.

He had held his own in the battle, which had surprised me.

Everything was packed back onto the Buses and Trucks before we climbed into our Vehicles, ready to Catch up with the Thousands of Romans before us.

"Drake?"

"Yes, Mary?"

"What is our plan?"

I stayed silent for a few moments, thinking.

"We're going to Camp Half-Blood."

"I know, I mean after this?"

"We fight against Tartarus."

"So nothing precise yet."

"Sadly, nothing right now. We're going to collect a force against the enemy, but it'll be hard."

She sighed. "Let's just hope for the best then."

I smiled.

 **Valentina**

I looked at the Tens of Thousands of Soldiers marching around me, while I stood upon a Podium carried by Dozens of Slaves. Beside me sat the King of Persia.

"Valentina, my dear."

"Yes, my king?" I said, inwardly sighing.

"Tell me, isn't this the greatest army you've ever seen?"

"It is," I said, trying to hide the disgust from my voice. The Man had a massive ego, and with every question he's asked me, I've gotten closer to stabbing him. Most of his questions weren't about his army, rather about Romance, which was making it much harder to restrain myself.

Christopher needs to come up with something for me to do. Maximus has gotten used to his role as a Servant, but I'm not a Whore for the King to enjoy.

His Army was massive though, that I couldn't deny.

"Two Hundred Thousand People."

"How did it get so big?"

"Lies, deception, and lots of threats towards Mortals. The only Persian Demigods that are a part of my army are in the Immortals."

I was silent for a long while, watching the procession of weapons before me.

A Black Streak appeared in the air, and it was slowly getting. closer.

The King noticed it too.

"One of those Demons Return, I see." He frowned.

He was talking about those things, that never had given a name or an origin story. They appeared a Month ago. Two Immortals had tried attacking one, but they had been killed before they had drawn weapons.

In the span of a second, it crashed onto the podium, making it buckle.

A two-meter high Character Stood in front of the King, black as the night.

It threw two people onto the floor, both of them spluttering. Their clothes were slightly singed, and both of them were covered in ash. A woman and a man.

"Who are you?" The King asked the two soldiers on the floor.

"Failures." The creature answered. Its voice sounded like Iron grinding on stone.

"I didn't ask you!" The King snapped.

Slowly, the man came to one Knee, while the woman still coughed.

"Tarik?"

"My King." He said, his voice quiet.

"What happened to him?" He Questioned the being.

"I Failed you, my King. There was an... Explosion... I think." Tarik continued.

"Valentina, give him some of your strength."

I placed my hand on the Shoulder of the Man, and I felt the tug of Power.

Taking Power was better than giving it, and I shuddered as some of my Power left me.

"That feels better. Thank you." The Man said, smiling at me.

"So tell me about the Amazons."

"We destroyed their Base of Operations, but we didn't find the body of the Queen."

"Probably Burnt to a Crisp."

"It's what conclusion I came to. An hour before this explosion, Captian Paniz-" He looked at the woman. "She told me that the Demon had escaped. I sent soldiers after it."

"Captain, what did they find?" The King asked Paniz. She was so weak she stopped after the first sound.

The King looked at me, and I placed my hand on her shoulder too, and yet more energy left my body.

Captain Paniz looked at the King.

"They found it. Dead, and Guarded by Mortal Soldiers and Romans."

"What were the Romans doing there?"

"We don't know. No Prisoners could be captured."

"And how did the Explosion happen?"

"We don't know that either, but it was big enough to destroy the entire city. We only survived cause of this being." Tarik said, pointing to the strange creature.

"Anything else you have information on?"

"Nothing."

"Rest, my Friend. I welcome you back to the Persian Army."

"Thank you, my King." He smiled, before both of them stood up, bowed, then limped away.

"What more do you want?" Spat King Shradeth at the creature.

"I want to Hunt." It growled.

"Who?"

"Those that have killed my Brother. He was foolish to misjudge demigods, but he must be avenged."

The King thought for a minute.

"Fine. Take Valentina over here. She'll help."

My eyes widened. I wanted to do my own thing, but not with something so otherworldly. Power radiated from it.

The monster seemed as unpleased by the idea as I was.

"I do not collaborate with Mortals."

"This is my order as the King of the Persian Empire. I want someone I trust beside you so that you don't go off to do whatever you please. Now, Valentina, get ready."

The Creature growled, but it did nothing more.

I sighed, knowing there was no use of protesting. It would only make everything worse.

"But before you two leave, I wish for you to introduce yourself to us. You never told us your name."

"Call me Genghis." It hissed.

"Very well. Get going."

 **Sophia**

The Search had so far been fruitless for everyone. The actual town seemed to be abandoned, though a few things alluded to an evacuation of the city.

Severe storms and a Giant can do that to Mortals.

"What are we even looking for?" John asked.

"No clue," I muttered.

"Great. Well, my best guess is that they're somewhere inside. So let's look for something that isn't boarded up."

I shrugged. It was a good idea.

Yet the search continued without finding anything. Finally, we arrived on the outskirts of the town, right in front of a massive warehouse. The Word _Amazon_ printed at the top.

"This is our best bet," I told them.

"Should we call the others?" Robert asked. He held the horn.

"Yeah, might as well."

Robert put his mouth to the horn and blew in it. The Sound echoed in the Abandoned town. Every few minutes he repeated this, until, half an hour later, we were reunited."

Ostia smiled when she saw the logo on the Warehouse.

"Amazon territory." She laughed.

"Are you sure they are in here?" Thalia asked.

"This place seems the best choice when it comes to hiding from Storm Giants. It's worth a look around inside, and we need everyone to do so."

"Fair enough."

I tried the nearest door, but it wouldn't open.

"Let me try," Julius said.

I stepped aside, and he kicked the door with such force, that a part of the wooden frame broke off.

We all looked at him, some of us raising an eyebrow.

"High Temperatures make me Cranky." He told us.

"I don't want to get in your way then," I said.

"Romans, Form up a Shield Wall." He commanded, and the Legionnaires ran inside. We walked in after them, John, the Hunters and some of the Amazons with arrows at the ready, everyone else with swords unsheathed, and spears pointed forwards.

Only Ostia and I carried nothing. Then again, my sword was a mere thought away, and Ostia was surrounded by Amazon bodyguards.

Like that, we marched through the dark warehouse, and it looked bad. Boxes were splintered, and bodies lay on the floor, some of them mutilated beyond recognition. One thing was the same about each one. Their wounds were tainted black, like Chaos.

"What happened here?" Ostia whispered angrily.

We stayed silent, but it was clear a battle had been fought, and it had been very one-sided.

"Whatever did this might still be here," Julius said.

"I don't want to meet it," Robert muttered, and Susan nodded in agreement.

"Desdemona, can you make some light in here?" I asked.

"Yeah." She closed her eyes, and a ball of light appeared in the air.

Not just Amazons lay on the floor, but a few silver-cloaked Hunters too.

"They were here then," Thalia said, sighing.

"We're too late," I muttered.

"Well if we are, let's fuck off. This place is giving me bad vibes." Julius shuddered.

Desdemona breathed out, and once again, everything went dim.

We looked around a bit longer, and I was about to put the idea forward that we should leave when something crashed to the floor.

A Box.

Screams followed the crash, and a Roman soldier was pulled from the shield wall by a rope.

"Drop your weapons, or I will kill him." Someone said from the darkness.

"There are more of us than you, so that wouldn't be good for you," Julius yelled at them.

Silence.

"Who are you with? Amazons, Hunters, Persians, or something more Primordial?" I asked.

A woman stepped out from the shadows, holding the Soldier by the shoulder, a blade pointed at his throat. I realized the Soldier was Optio Horatius.

It was clear that she wore the armor of an Amazon Warrior.

"Let the soldier go." Queen Ostia commanded.

"You are not to give me commands. I have a prisoner."

"I am Queen Ostia." The Queen said.

The Woman hesitated, allowing Horatius to Rip free from her Grip, but after a step, he fell over. His leg was obviously wounded. The Rope that had dragged him from the wall was attached to a spike.

"My... My Queen?" The Warrior asked, confused.

"Yes." Ostia smiled.

"I-I'm sorry. I did not recognize you." She stuttered, dropping to one knee. "We thought you had died. In Seattle. Lower your weapons, Amazons, for our Queen, is here." She called out, and multiple other Women stepped out behind the First warrior. At least two Dozen.

"Do not bow. We have much to do, and not enough time. What happened here?" Ostia asked.

 _ **Bruce**_

"COME ON. Haul those Sandbags." I roared at the Hermes Cabin. They weren't as quick and light-footed when they had to carry Fifteen Kilograms of Sand in their hand.

News had come from Malcolm yesterday. He had been at Camp Jupiter, saying that the Romans were on the move towards Camp Half-Blood, and they needed space.

Meanwhile, Chiron had decided that preparing for war was our best option. Ever Since Sophia and the others left, we've been doing this.

Some quick magic from Bob and the Hecate Cabin was enough to evacuate Montauk, so Mortals wouldn't cause a problem. We had moved out all the way to Lake Montauk, where a massive wall was being built.

Sandbags, wooden stakes, landmines with Celestial Bronze, and whatever machines Cabin Nine could come up with made for a pretty good line of defense.

Every Cabin and Spirit was hard at work. Ares Cabin, Samuel and Chiron were training everyone that wasn't needed for current efforts. Hermes Cabin and Demeter Cabin were helping to make this wall. Hephaestus had the most jobs, for they needed to mend the old Weapons in our armory, Build Coastal Fortifications, and create traps for defense.

Campers from Hecate Cabin were making Potions and things I didn't understand, while Athena campers were mapping out the area for the best defense strategy.

Even the Hypnos cabin had a Job. They were following Campers out on Quests, telling them of current events through dreams. So far, nobody from Sophia's group had been contacted.

Some of our most powerful fighters were gone.

Daniel, that kid was something terrifying, though I would never admit it. He could easily hold this position on his own.

Sophia has a mind for strategy, John's good with a bow, Robert with crafting, Susan with Motivation and Charmspeak, and Desdemona's got special talents with the mist.

Then there's another group, who've been out and about for many months now. Technically they aren't on a quest, as the Oracle had been silent for the past few decades, but Chiron asked them to look around for something that's stayed between Chiron and the Questers. Even Sophia wasn't told, which is weird since she's basically Chiron's Right Hand.

Overall, it was angering that Sophia had taken so many good People with her, but that's Sophia.

"Hey, Bro!" A voice yelled while a punch numbed my arm.

My head whipped over to look at Elizabeth, my Demon-Fearing Sister, from both Immortal, and Mortal side.

"What is it?" I said, gritting my teeth, equally angry at my Her for breaking my Train of thought, and at me for getting so pulled into my thoughts.

"Something's Coming." She pointed her Spear towards Montauk.

A group of riders was rapidly approaching, so I put my helmet on and grabbed my spear.

"Stay here," I said.

"But-"

"I said stay. Make an IM to the Camp, call for backup." I looked at the Riders. "These aren't allies," I muttered.

She nodded, jogging away.

I walked forward to stand before the half-complete wall, the Riders getting ever closer.

They stopped in front of me, and I got to see what they looked like. Wearing Robes, they seemed unarmored at first glance, but the glint of sword Hilt Decorations, as well as chainmail, showed that they weren't that weak.

There were Ten of them.

"Who are you? What do you want?" I asked.

"You are Greeks?" The Man asked, his accent foreign.

"Yes. Why do you ask?"

"We come with an offer."

"Well then, let me hear it."

"We are Persians, and we ask for your assistance."

"Persians?" I asked, surprised.

"Yes, what's so hard to understand about it?"

"We were enemies in the past, what makes you think we will be allies?"

"The Past is the Past."

"What do you ask of us?"

"The Romans will ask for help from you. They are your enemies and wish to betray you. When they arrive, kill them."

"Why should I believe you?"

"You must."

It was clear that this was a poor attempt of lying, but it was interesting as to how they were putting it. This was amusing.

"What if we say no, and kill you?"

"There are more of us. A Small Army, not far. We're their scouts, and if we do not return, that means you'll declare war against none other than King Shradeth."

"Well see, here's the thing. I don't give two shits about your king or your alliance. We've been told differently by Greeks, that you are the enemy, not the Romans, and I'll believe them over you."

"Then you will die."

"But not for a while yet," I smirked, flipping my spear around, and throwing it at the Spokesman before he could react.

He dropped from his saddle, and the other nine roared with indignantly.

"Past Offenses are hard to correct. The Romans managed to do it, but you've failed. We showed you the strength of the Greeks at Thermopylae, and we'll teach you that lesson once again. NOW COME AT ME." I roared.

Three Horsemen charged, and I unsheathed my sword, crouching low. One of them was too eager and galloped in front of the other two, which was a mistake.

Throwing my sword at the Persian, it struck him in the chest. Before he even had time to topple, I was kicking him off the horse, grabbing the reigns, and pulling the sword from his chest.

That made the other two hesitate, and that was enough. A Head and an Arm fell onto the floor, followed by two bodies.

"YOU HAVE DECLARED WAR AGAINST THE GREEKS. FIGHT ME AND YOU DIE." I yelled at them.

Before any of them could react, two Pegasi flew over my head, releasing arrow after arrow into the Persians, downing both Horses and Soldiers. That was the point where the scouts realized they weren't going to win this battle, and they started to retreat. Only two remained in the end, who the Pegasi riders didn't follow.

"You may have won this battle, but not the War!" One of the Scouts Cried.

An arrow hit him in the back, silencing him, and making the other ride even faster

"Thank you for your help," I said, looking at the Riders.

"No Problem," Darryl said. He was the Head Counsellor of the Apollo Cabin while John was gone.

"Yeah, we were just riding looking around a bit with the Pegasi when we got a Call," George told me.

Liz, along with a few other Hermes Cabin Kids, marched down the small hill, holding swords.

"Make something scary out of these bodies, and get the horses stabled and treat their wounds," I told her.

She grimaced, knowing what I was asking her to do.

"Ew, I'm not touching a dead body." One of the Hermes kids said.

"Then don't. Get back to building that wall. But this is war. War comes with death." I told her somberly.

The Girl gulped, before shuffling off.

"What'll happen now?" Liz asked.

"We make this defensive line a priority. No more training. Archers and Hoplites will be here, and we'll hold this place. A Legion of Romans will be here to help us soon. Until then, we Survive."

"What if this line falls?"

"Let us not think of that."

 **Sophia**

"The short version please," Ostia said.

The Woman who had led the small band of survivors, introducing herself as Petra, sighed.

"Short version is we were attacked by a creature. It was black from head to toe and fast as any god would be. We tried fighting, but finally, it got to Commander Aleksandra, and he got the information he could get from her. Where the HQ of the Amazons was..."

"What happened afterward?"

"It left in a puff of smoke. We tried treating the Commander, but she died from this darkness the creature produced."

My face whitened.

"Sophia, have you met such a beast?" Julius asked.

"Yes. Our route towards Camp Jupiter was interrupted by such a monster, but we killed it."

"How dangerous are they?"

"My boyfriend, Daniel, He said... That we shouldn't fight them if we can. They're dangerous."

"I see."

Thalia held up a hand.

"Sorry to interrupt, but I can't see any silver cloaks in your ranks, but there are bodies. Where are my Sisters?"

"They're guarding our... Let's say, Guest."

"How many remain."

"Three."

I saw Thalia droop a little, followed by the other Hunters.

"Who is this guest?" Julius Asked.

The Amazon bristled, but after a quick glance towards the Queen, she seemed to regain control.

"Well. Let us show you."

Petra stood up and beckoned for everyone to follow. We walked for a bit, before arriving at closed double doors. They opened to a stairway leading down to the basement. Another set of doors were at the bottom, and after a knock, a familiar face opened the door.

"Jenny!" We cried out, almost at once.

She stood there with shock, open-mouthed, not knowing what to do.

We helped make that decision when as one, we surged forward for a group hug.

Everyone stood around to watch, allowing us to meet and greet. Jenny felt sorry for not contacting anyone that she was okay, and she started talking with John for a bit about archery.

I looked around the basement.

Two Hunters sat around a table with a man, playing poker.

After a look at the cards laid in front of him, the man folded, before standing up and walking over to us.

He wore dirty rags, but his face was incredibly handsome. Golden hair, sparkling white teeth, blue eyes.

Almost like a God.

"Hello, Ladies." He said, eyeing me. I blushed.

"Who is he?" I asked Petra.

Before she could reply, someone gasped. It was John.

"This can't be true," John said.

Only then did I realize the similarities, and it hit me who he was.

"John?" The man asked, just as surprised.

Without saying a word, John strode up, and punched him in the nose, Golden ichor dripping onto the floor.

Only Julius wasn't understanding what had just happened.

"Who is he then?"

"I-" The Man said, standing up, his voice stuffed, golden blood trickling down his lips and soaking his rags.

 **"I am Apollo."**


	13. Cornered

The silence was broken by Robert.

"How?"

"What do you mean how?" Apollo asked, confused.

"You've been gone for a century and a half!" John yelled, his fists still clenched. "Not answering prayers, not giving prophecies. BUT YOU HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO MAKE CHILDREN."

"What can I say, I'm a god," Apollo said, chuckling, but he quickly stopped when he saw John's fist tremble.

"Tell us where you've been," I told Apollo.

"Well, now that's a long story."

"We don't care," John said.

"Where do I start? I first woke up a decade after the Second Giant War, pretty ragged. This was my Father's punishment. Taking away my place from Olympus, and dressing me in these rags. I've been wandering around ever since then. My strength, power, Charisma, Music, Poetry, and Archery all declined, and now they are at their lowest possible point. I'm still better than any mortal, but it's not what I could be."

"So you're saying you've been walking around for A hundred and forty years, and until this point, you haven't even taken the time to meet your Children?" John asked.

He looked sheepishly at John, wiping some blood trickling to his lip.

"I deserved that punch."

Without saying another word John stormed back up the stairs.

Apollo sighed.

"It's not that easy. For the last two years, I was trapped in a cave. The Ceiling had collapsed on me. Only my Godly strength saved me from death. The Amazons found me by chance, while they were expanding their underground Vehicle Bay or something like that. I asked them to keep it a secret that I was here in Tulsa, even from their own Queen. However, they contacted the Hunters of my Sister, since the cave entrance was marked strangely. The hunters were looking for this Symbol I think, so they came here. I was injured, my leg healing much slower than it would have for me two centuries ago. The Hunters stayed here while I healed. Then a day ago, the monster attacked."

"And we plan to stay here for a while longer," Jenny said.

"This place isn't safe though. We have to leave."

"With what? Going by Car would be suicide when there's a Storm Giant Outside." Petra asked.

"You know about it?"

"When it first came close to us, we saw it. Typhon doesn't care too much about mortals or Demigods, as we came to realize. However, Immortals, he can smell."

"Oh, that's not good," Julius muttered.

"Don't worry. Apollo doesn't give off the Scent of an Immortal, so we're safe."

"I'm not worried about Apollo." Julius said, "We've brought someone else with us."

"Who?" Petra's face paled, already knowing the answer wasn't good.

"Helios," Thalia muttered.

"Then we've gotta go," Ostia interjected.

"Hersilia, take Paulus and Luna with you to Helios. Tell him to get his ass here." Julius Ordered.

"What of the Sun Chariot?"

"Leave it," Apollo said.

"What? There won't be a Sun if it's destroyed."

"There will, though some of the Sun's power is in the form of that Chariot, it isn't the only power source for the sun. We cannot leave through the air, and driving with it on land is dangerous, therefore we need to leave it behind. Believe me. It's a sweet ride, but we've got to sacrifice some things. However hard it is with the memories surrounding it." He said sadly.

"Fine with me," Julius said, shooing away the Three Legionnaires.

"Do you have enough Vehicles?" I asked.

"Yes, definitely," Petra said.

"We should get them ready to move out then."

"Take anything we can use for the upcoming war," Ostia told the Amazon soldiers, "Weapons, armor, equipment, food... Really anything." They nodded and ran upstairs.

"How much time do we have?" Thalia asked.

"The Second you arrived inside the Bubble of Air held by the Wind Gods, it sensed Helios. How long did you search for us?" Apollo told us.

"Fifteen minutes, probably more."

"Then we have only a few minutes at most," Ostia said.

Lightning struck so close to the warehouse that the ground shook.

"Upstairs. We need everyone with loading the equipment." Petra said.

We ran after her.

 **Viscount**

"So you've contacted Camp Half-Blood?" I asked Malcolm.

"Yep. They know we're coming."

"Good. Let's hope nothing else happens, and we can arrive in peace."

"Have you gotten any news from my Friends?" He asked me.

"Nothing since last time."

He frowned.

"Don't worry, I'm pretty sure they've got the Queen and they are a day behind us."

"I hope so."

Silence quickly took over in the car so I turned on the Radio.

No matter how much I turned the dial, no music channels came up.

"That's weird."

After trying for a few more seconds, I gave up.

"Some News then. We can always do with some news." Malcolm said.

I tuned in to one of the News Channels, and not a second later, alarms started blaring.

"What the-"

"Shut up!" I ordered.

 _"We request all citizens to stay at home as much as possible. The United States is Officially at war. All Across Eurasia, millions of People are joining this new March around Europe, and with them band many more animals, baffling scientists. They are now registered as a Demonic cult, and therefore we request everyone to cease all communications with anyone you suspect of being a part of it. It's also suspected that these Cultic Figures have caused the recent terror attacks against the United States."_

 _"Thank you, Dave. We send our condolences to those killed in the Destruction of Seattle. It seems certain now, that no military action can retake Los Angeles, without serious civilian casualties, so the military have blockaded the city, leaving behind Thousands of Hostages. Many Military Checkpoints have been attacked, and recent reports given out to the public show that a great force of these so-called cultists are marching up from South America. Millions of them if we are to believe these reports."_

 _"Europe isn't doing much better Jim. All Military Actions have failed, due to the Soldiers unwillingness to shoot at civilians. Massive Earthquakes have shaken the Continent, The Italian and Iberian Peninsula have fully detached from the rest of the Continent. It seems that Portugal has started building a military complex along its shoreline, probably to house as many people as possible when these Cultists cross over the Small stretch of the Atlantic that has now formed between France and Spain."_

 _"We've also got news, that an army of protesters has formed up near New York. They support these Cultists and claim that military actions against them are unethical."_

 _"In other news from New York state, Montauk has been evacuated for fear of a coming Storm. The Military has set up camp there."_

"That sounds like the Greeks. They've spread out quite a bit. The Romans will have enough space." Malcolm said.

I was too focused on the News that Seattle was Destroyed. That's where Julius had been sent with Sophia and everyone else.

"Malcolm, can you still do these Iris Messages?"

"I mean, you have a nice supply of Gold Drachmas, so yes. Who do you need to call?"

"We need to know if Sophia is okay."

 **Sophia**

"So you've been alive all this time?" Helios asked Apollo, whilst placing a box of Celestial bronze Greaves onto the back of a truck.

"Yeah," Apollo replied sheepishly, throwing a bundle of spears into a container.

"They took me out of retirement because of your absence, that's not cool man."

"It's not like I could drive the Sun Chariot in my current state. Don't be angry at me, but at Zeus."

"There won't be a sun chariot now." He grumbled.

"Be happy we changed to the Horsepower an Engine gives, rather than still having reindeer or whatever you used back then."

Helios Bristled, "They are horses, and they are happy wherever they retired." he huffed.

"Stop it guys," Susan said, and they both did just that. It was funny seeing a God and a Titan listening to her.

"We've already sent three Trucks outside, they're on the road. Get in." Petra said.

Outside, the wind was getting louder and louder. We were running out of time.

"We've still got supplies to load up though," Julius said.

"No more. Or we can try and drive away with a hurricane chasing us."

That didn't sound like a good idea, so we all got into cars and trucks.

Helios was too big to ride inside a car, so he was sitting on the flatbed of a Truck.

"Go!" Ostia yelled into the radio from her car.

I was sitting in the front seat of an SUV once more. The Driver wasn't Julius though, but rather an Amazon warrior by the name of Estella. Behind me sat John and Apollo, separated by Susan, and behind them sat Robert and Desdemona. Rebecca had gone with the First three trucks.

We rolled out of the warehouse doors, and that was the first time I noticed how much closer the stormclouds were. A Crack of Lightning briefly highlighted something horrific, and I turned away. It was still miles away. We could escape.

Turning onto the highway, we were quickly heading away from danger.

"Alright Ladies and Gentlemen, we're now straight on the road for Florida," Ostia said in the Radio, and we all smiled.

Five minutes passed, and half the Group was getting ready to sleep. I wanted to do the same, but the constant whistling of the wind and the Sharp Cracks of thunder kept me awake, making me nervous.

"Sophia, right?" Estella asked.

"Yeah."

"Get some sleep. You look like a zombie."

"We've been through too much in too short of a time."

"I understand. Don't worry, I'm a decent driver." She smirked.

I turned my head sideways and closed my eyes.

"Sophia."

"What is it?" I groaned.

"Sophia."

I realized that the voice wasn't anyone from inside the car. It was too blurry to recognize, but I sat up quickly, hoping it was Daniel.

Instead of my Boyfriend, a familiar figure stood close by.

Chuck. Chuck Finnigan. Counselor of the Hypnos Cabin.

"What- How?"

"Wait, let the others arrive before I explain."

"Who?"

I got my answer immediately when John, Susan, Robert, Desdemona, and Rebecca appeared beside me.

"Welcome Friends. You are in what I like to call, a Dream message."

"Chuck!" John exclaimed.

"That's the most awake I've ever seen the dude," Robert muttered.

"In here, things are different Robert. The only restrictions here are your imagination and the willpower of the person who started this conversation. Nevermind. It's not why I looked for you today."

"Why then?"

"He'll arrive soon enough."

And just like that, another figure popped into existence.

"Sophia Whitefield, you've caused me a headache and a half."

Bruce.

"It's good to see you too," I said.

"We don't have time for this," Bruce grunted.

"Well actually-"

"Shut up Chuck."

Chuck Gulped.

"Anyway. You've taken just about everybody that we could use right now. Chiron needs someone to help train archers, Hephaestus Cabin needs its best smith back, Hecate Cabin needs more magic and we need a Good Voice to inspire. Also, we could use your Strategic Mind, and Rebecca's warping around."

"That's sweet of you Bruce," I said sarcastically.

"Where are you now? Have you found Jenny?"

"Yes, she's fine, though she's a Hunter of Artemis now."

"Why isn't she here then?" Bruce asked, glancing at Chuck.

He shrugged. "Probably not sleeping."

"Nevermind then. Thing is, we're in a sticky situation. These Persians Malcolm talked about have turned up at our doorstep. Scouts didn't come back with good news. We're sorely outnumbered, and wholly unprepared against an assault of this size. We've got maybe a days worth of time, which will be enough for most Demigods living in New York to come to Camp Half-Blood. Once the main force camps at our gates, they won't be able to get through. We can at most have One Thousand Demigods to help fight, and only Two-Hundred are well trained with Swords, Spears, and Bows."

"What can you do?"

"I've gotten together the Ares cabin, along with Nike, Nemesis, Morpheus and Athena Cabin. Together we have around two hundred Hoplites. Aphrodite and Demeter Cabin Help take care of horses and also scout out the enemy with Pegasi. Hermes and Apollo Cabin have been given a bow training."

"How many do you have altogether?"

"Well, we have Two hundred Hoplites, around Three Hundred Archers, if we count the Nymphs, but they'll only be able to help if a tree is close by, so let's say a hundred Archers. Everyone else is either a Horseman, a Scout, A simple Swordsman or otherwise building defenses. Hephaestus cabin made us some Suicidal Automatons, but they are single-use. Satyrs will act as healers. Other than that, we don't have too much. The Vans are for quick transport between lines. We expanded Camp Half-Blood so that the Romans could fit without a problem."

A map of Long Island flashed into existence, and Bruce stepped over to it, as did I.

"We've quickly built two lines here and here. Either side of Fort Pond. They are mainly made of Cars and whatever debris the mortals left behind. We have to hold these lines until the one at Lake Montauk is Complete. That one will be much better to defend. I believe, and I think you will also agree with this, that the Persians arrived on foot, and they'll have a sore lack of a Navy, which is good for us. We need to use fewer People to crew ships."

"Hmm. The Defenses are pretty well laid out. Are there no mortals left in Montauk?"

"We had it evacuated with the help of Hecate Cabin. There's nobody there."

"You could use some cars that are otherwise unnecessary, to form traps."

"What do you mean?"

"They are filled with fuel, you could even find a Petrol Station. Fill bottles, buckets, whatever. Use it against them. These aren't monsters, but Demigods."

"So you're saying we should use Molotov Cocktails against them?" Bruce raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah."

"You've just grown in my eyes, Miss Whitefield." He chuckled.

"Also, Fire arrows are useful when playing with Gasoline. I'm sure a few well-aimed shots at prepared Gasoline spots could start a raging wall of fire."

"Now that's something I didn't think of. Should we use Greek Fire while we're at it?"

"If you don't need to, then no. Keep them for when you retreat to the better-built wall. You've got an abundance of otherwise unused Gasoline that will do just fine."

"Okay. Well, that's been decided then." The map puffed out of existence.

"Anything else?" I asked.

Bruce started thinking.

"Well, do the rest of you have ideas?"

"We trust our Cabins with their decisions," John said, and the others nodded.

"Good. When will you arrive?"

"A few days. We have to drop off the Queen of the Amazons in Florida, then we'll beeline straight for Camp Half-Blood."

"What?" Bruce choked. "You're going cross-country while we-"

Everything went dark.

 **Bruce**

I sat up gasping but didn't even hesitate before hauling Chuck from his bed next to me and shaking him.

"What. The. Fuck. Happened." I said through gritted teeth.

"They were woken suddenly. I don't know. They're in trouble."

"Can nothing be easy for once?" I roared, dropping Chuck, and kicking the bunk bed.

"Hey Dude, not cool." Someone muttered from the top.

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" I roared.

And with those last words, I stormed outside, grabbing my spear, propped beside the door.

"Bro..."

"What is it, Liz?"

"Just got an IM. You should go to the Big House at once."

"Who said that?"

"Chiron."

 **I muttered something unflattering about horses, nevertheless, I turned in the direction of the Big House.**


	14. The Stormfront of War

**Sophia**

"Oh shit, what was that?" Robert Moaned.

"We've stopped," John muttered.

"No shit, Sherlock, but why?" Desdemona groaned.

"This isn't good," I said, looking up. Things were still pretty blurry for me.

Glass littered my lap and smoke billowed through the broken windscreen.

A Dry wheezing sound came from beside me, and a whimper from behind. I looked over to see an arm long bit of Shrapnel jutting out from the chest of Estella. Its tip had pierced through her, stopping merely an inch from Apollo's face, who had been sitting behind her.

The Car in front of us was smoking, so I opened the door, and shuffled over. Nobody was alive inside. The hood had been melted, and shrapnel had shredded all passengers.

 _"Erica, Come in. Do you read me?"_

I grabbed the radio from inside the car.

"Petra, this is Sophia. I'm pretty sure Lightning struck them."

 _"Any Survivors?"_

"No."

Silence for a few seconds.

 _"We can't think about the dead right now. Continue on our route. And Quickly."_

"There might be a problem with that. Our Driver is dead."

Yet more silence.

 _"Do any of you know how to drive?"_

"Maybe."

" _We'll continue this conversation on your own car radio."_

I limped back to the car.

"Any of you know how to drive?" I asked.

Everybody shook their head, even Apollo.

I raised an eyebrow at Apollo.

"One of the few skills I lost after my downfall from Olympus."

"Well, then I just have to wing it then. Can't be too hard." I muttered, opening the driver-side door, and checking Estella for a Pulse. Nothing.

Slowly pulling out the Shrapnel, I dropped it on the floor, before lifting Estella out of the Vehicle, and laying her by the side of the road.

I had seen Argus do this many times before. I turned the keys but nothing happened.

"Maybe if I do this..." I muttered to myself.

I pressed down a pedal, while turning the key, and the engine gave a roar, before spluttering and dying.

"That doesn't sound good," Robert told me.

"Why?"

"The Shrapnel's probably damaged the engine. We won't be getting anywhere."

"Can you fix it?"

"I can try." He said, climbing out of the car and popping open the hood. As he lifted it up, I noticed the not-so-subtle holes on it.

After waiting a good five minutes, he walked over to the other car and prised open the melted hood with a larger piece of shrapnel. He searched around a bit, before pulling out what he needed.

"Lucky find." He yelled over to me. "The Part we need survived the lightning. Fortuna is with us."

"Don't Jinx it..." I muttered, tapping on the wheel.

The Wind was picking up, which wasn't a good sign.

"Hurry up Robert," John yelled back.

"Yeah, yeah..."

In a few minutes, he had replaced the part, throwing the broken one over his shoulder.

"Get in. Stop dicking around," I hissed.

"Alright, Alright, Calm down." He grunted, getting back in.

I tried the ignition again, and the engine roared to life.

The Car jerked forward, and I quickly lifted my foot off the pedal.

"What do I do now?"

"Change Gears, and we're good to go. Here, let me help." Robert said.

A second later the stick beside me moved into a different position.

"So you know how to drive?"

"No, just how to use machines."

"So you do know how to drive." I groaned.

"Well..."

"Here, let's change-"

A blinding white flash of lightning struck a nearby tree, shaking the ground.

"GO! GO! GO!" Apollo yelled, and I floored the gas pedal.

The car sped down the highway, as another Bolt struck the destroyed car we had left behind. The sound of the explosion was masked by the lightning.

"DON'T STOP. SOMETHING WANTS TO KILL US." John yelled.

"YOU DON'T SAY?" I screamed back, as more and more bolts missed us by less than a meter.

A rainbow appeared before me, blocking my view.

"Hey, Sophia-"

"FUCK OFF MALCOLM," I yelled, swiping a hand through the Rainbow, making his face disappear.

Robert was constantly changing the gears for me, and gradually the Lightning Bolts stopped.

"What the fuck was that?" Susan asked, holding her head.

I was breathing raggedly from screaming so much, both of my hands gripping the steering wheel as hard as possible.

"We might have just survived a pissed off Storm Giant." Apollo laughed.

Uneasy laughter spread through the car, joining Apollo's.

 _"What the fuck is going on there Sophia?"_

"The car was damaged, we managed to fix it, but Typhon got too close. Hell rained down on us, but we survived."

 _"Good to hear. Now get a move one. Once we see you guys in the rearview mirror, we'll stop."_

 **Bruce**

"Did Chiron say what he wants?" I asked Liz.

"Nope. Only that you should go."

I muttered a few horse-related curses, before reaching the door. Opening the door angrily, I smacked the Coat rack aside.

"Calm down there, Boy."

It was Mr. D.

"Oh, you're back," I said, not too thrilled. I had heard about what had gone down between Daniel and Sophia.

"That Boy is gone for now, and I am happy to come back if he isn't on the same continent as me."

"Are you scared of a Demigod?" I mocked.

I thought I'd get turned into a Dolphin right there and then, but no fire burned in his eyes, though he did frown.

"He is far more powerful than even he can realize. A Son of the Most Ancient God out there could easily best a God, no matter what any of my peers think."

I shrugged.

"Where's Chiron?"

"Oh, he's downstairs with our Guest."

"Guest?"

"You'll see."

Dionysus hadn't helped a lot, so I walked up to the basement door, and wrenched it open, quickly walking down the steps.

"Chiron, what's-" I stopped when I noticed someone chained to the wall.

Chiron stayed silent.

"Who is he?" I asked him.

The Kid looked up, and I gasped.

"Toby?" I asked, but I couldn't quite believe what I was seeing.

His eyes were no longer a blue color, but rather dark red, the veins around his eyes were bulging, the color of them glowing starkly against his face. They were underlined by black marks.

"The Boy has been dead for a long time now." Toby hissed.

"What are you then?" I asked.

The Thing stayed silent.

I looked at Chiron, raising an eyebrow.

"We found him whilst looking around in the woods. He doesn't seem himself."

"I noticed too. What happened to him?"

"Neither Dionysus or I know about what happened to him. All we can do is guess."

"And how long has he been down here for?"

"Around a day."

"Anyone else seen him?"

"Bob and Drassilus have both looked at him."

"And?"

"They say that he's under the influence of something powerful. Something Evil."

"Tartarus..."

Chiron nodded.

"Can we break this tie between them somehow?"

Toby's head snapped up.

"YOU WILL NOT BREAK THE LINK BETWEEN ME AND MY MASTER." He screeched, "He has already sensed my failure. My life may end at any moment now."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"He Controls me. He controls if I live or die." His voice seemed like he was returning back to normal. The Kid I had known before.

"Listen here, I don't know what you are, but you will speak, one way or another." I unsheathed my sword.

"Bruce. Stop. I will not let a camper come to harm. We'll figure out something else."

"Stupid Centaur, your camper is dead. His body and mind, taken over by my Master, just like so many others. This body is for my Master to use as he pleases."

I stepped one step forward, and Toby's face paled.

"His focus is on me, I can feel it." He muttered. "My Lord, I'm sorry for my-"

His words were cut off, and blood spurted onto my face as an invisible force split open his neck.

A strong gust of wind blew past me, nearly knocking me off my feet, then it was over.

I looked over to Chiron, and he stood there, ashen-faced, his shirt also covered in blood.

Running over to Toby, I checked for a pulse, but there was none.

"Tell me everything that has happened," I said.

A few seconds of silence, then Chiron talked.

"After the Incident during the Capture the Flag game, three campers went missing. Toby Hitchkinson, Joseph Borderman, Philip Carson."

"Yes, I know that. You told us to look out for them after Daniel, Sophia and Nico had left."

"We had found Joe and Phil a day after that announcement. They had been killed the same way Toby just died. Their necks were cut, and a strange symbol had appeared on their chest. You can check Toby, though I assure you, it's also there."

"Why didn't we give them a Funeral?" I asked, getting angry.

"The gods willed it. The last thing we would've needed was a creature of Tartarus getting into Elysium."

"Is everything okay?" Liz called down from upstairs.

She didn't need to see this. I had freaked out from this. I didn't need to see what would happen if she'd see this.

"Yeah," I replied.

"You'd better come. We need you back at Montauk."

"Going," I said, looking at Chiron for a final time, before wiping the blood off of my face.

 _ **Viscount**_

Malcolm was looking at the spot where Sophia's face had briefly appeared before the connection was interrupted.

"Looks like they have problems of their own. They'll call back once they are safe."

"I hope so. Let's get going. We can't sit at this Petrol Station all day." Malcolm told me, putting the power washer he had been using to make a rainbow, back into its holder.

I looked up at the sky and noticed a formation of white spots. Eagles.

They had been sent out to follow the Persian Force that was drawing closer to us. It wasn't the Entire Army we had gotten the report of, the army that had caused us to evacuate. This was a much smaller force that had been sent after us. Around Twenty Thousand Persians.

"I agree. We still have a long trip to sit through."

 _ **Sophia**_

"You guys alright?" Ostia asked.

"Yeah. We're good. I'd like to pass the Opportunity to Drive to someone else though." I told them.

"I've had enough of doing nothing for now. I'll help." Julius said.

"Fantastic. We'll stay here for a few minutes, then head off. There's nothing else that can get in our way now."

"What about the Hunters?" Desdemona asked.

"I told my sisters to meet us in Tampa. We're going to help you in this war." Thalia said.

"And the Amazons?"

"I've sent a message to the Commander at Tampa, and she's issued a Worldwide call for the Amazons to unite in big armies. Some will meet us in Florida by the time we get there, others will slowly make their way to New York, and there'll be some that'll try and fight a guerilla war against the Persians."

"Alright. Let's be off then." I said.

 _ **One Day Later**_

"Argh. My back..." John moaned as we got out of the SUV. In front of us stood A massive Building, something that was worthy of being called the Headquarters of the Amazons. At the Entrance stood an Honor Guard of around a hundred Amazons, each one dressed entirely for war, green capes billowing behind them.

As Ostia got close, they saluted as one, and a woman walked out of the door.

We walked closer to Ostia.

"Commander Meghan. It is good to see you again." Ostia smiled.

"The same can be said for you, my Queen. Is Commander Aleksandra with you?"

Petra stepped forward.

"She died in a battle with an otherworldly creature. I am the New Commander until the Queen Judges otherwise."

The Commander Nodded.

With that out of the way, the Commander led us inside. Two Amazon Soldiers appeared from a corridor, leading off the Soldiers and anyone else that Wasn't seen as a commander.

Me, John and Rebecca represented the Greeks, while Julius, Horatius, and Septia the Romans. Thalia and Jenny for the Hunters of Artemis and Ostia, Beatrice and Petra stayed from the Amazons that had come with us.

Apollo was on his own, as Helios had disappeared the second we left Tornado Alley.

We sat down in a large conference room, and Ostia was the first to start talking.

"Now that we're here, I wish to start by saying a massive thanks to the Greek and Roman Heroes that came to save me, though their losses were high."

"No Problem, Queen," I said.

"Same here. I hope the Amazons do repay us with their help against the Persian enemy." Julius told Ostia.

"Of course, we already discussed it, though not enough. Commander Meghan, how many soldiers have gathered here?"

"Since your message, I've managed to gather everyone South of Tampa here. One and a Half Thousand soldiers. They're still gearing up from our warehouse. Another Four and half Thousand Soldiers will Join us as we travel to New York, and a further two and a half thousand will arrive from the North."

"So we'll have close to Nine Thousand warriors to fight against the Persians at Camp Half-Blood."

"Around that number, yes."

"Very Good."

"Thank you, my Queen."

"How long do we have to wait before we can move out?"

"A few hours. We have enough Vehicles for Everyone. That's mostly thanks to our New Soldier Transports. Two Hundred soldiers Per Vehicle. They're slower than an SUV but much faster than walking."

"Okay. I suggest the following then. Our Companions should get new Weaponry and Armor. There's most probably equipment that suits your needs in the warehouse. Rest up a bit, then we can move out when we're ready."

"One last thing, my Queen." The Commander Piped up.

"What is it?" Ostia asked.

"We have some visitors. They arrived a few hours ago, and I would've dealt with them personally, however, because you were arriving soon, and what they were asking was something quite big, I waited for your decision."

"Where are they now?"

"Waiting for you outside." Commander Meghan said, repeating the answer she had gotten in an earpiece.

"Let them in."

A few seconds later, the doors opened, and half a dozen people walked inside.

My heart skipped a beat.

Each one wore dark robes, and dual swords hung on their hips.

The Assassins of Chaos.

"Hello, Ostia, Queen of the Amazons."

"Who are you?" Ostia asked.

"Harold?"

It was Harold that stood at the head of the group.

His mouth remained open as he realized I was sitting merely a few meters from him.

"Sophia?" He asked.

"You two know each other?" Ostia looked between the two of us.

"Yes." Was all I said.

Harold shook his head to clear his thoughts and continued.

"Sorry, my Queen. My name is Harold Jameson, the regent-grandmaster of the Assassins of Chaos. We are followers of Ragnos, Lord of Creation, Chaos and the Universe."

"I've never heard of you people before."

"We remained in the shadows for centuries, ever since Ancient Greece. However, times are changing. Tartarus has risen from the Abyss, surrounding himself with an army of Monsters the world has never seen before."

"Very well, what do you want to ask of us?"

"We're gathering an army, one to battle against Tartarus. I know times are hard, and you require every soldier you have, but maybe you can spare some soldiers, or guide us to Mortals or Demigods that might want to join our cause."

"Why would I do that now? I should be looking at you like I would look at a threat. By the looks of you, I know what you wear around your waist isn't just decoration. Sophia, you know these people. What can you tell me about them."

"They helped in the Battle of Temple Hill, without them we would've died. They're trustworthy, not to mention the fact that my Boyfriend is their Leader."

"Is that so? In that case, I'll help. There's a small group of demigods in Miami. They don't trust us enough to join our ranks, but they have a good community of around fifty demigods there. You could try them. I can't give you any of my soldiers, cause we need them for our own operations."

"Thank you for your help." Harold Bowed, before glancing at me.

"If nobody has any more requests, then this Council is dismissed. You'll know when it's time for us to leave for New York."

I stood up and made a beeline towards Harold.

"Miss Whitefield. What a surprise to see you here." Harold said once I got close enough.

"What's happening on Chaos Isle that you need an army?"

"It's a long story, one that'll take too long to explain in this meeting. However, Daniel is fine. He's currently training himself extensively. In a month or so, I'll have an army ready for him, and then we'll be off to Hold back the forces of Tartarus."

"Can't you tell me anything else?"

"I'm sorry. Now is not the time. But soon, you'll hear from him. I'll make sure."

"Thank you, Harold."

He nodded. "June, take us to Miami."

And a second later he was gone.

Just disappeared into thin air.

John spoke from behind me, and I jumped.

"Don't worry, Sophia. He's going to be fine. I didn't get a whole lot of time to get to know him, but what I could judge was that he's a tough SOB."

I would've agreed with John, were it not for the fact that Daniel was going to war against Tartarus.

 **Nothing good was going to come from that.**


	15. New Battles, Old Enemies

_**Bruce**_

"HOLD THE LINE!" I roared down the row of shields either side of me. "AND PUSH!"

With a massive shove, the top level of the car pile tumbled forward, crushing hundreds of Persians who had tried climbing up them.

"FOR CAMP HALF-BLOOD!" Liz yelled beside me, and everyone jumped up onto the cars, quickly reforming into a phalanx. The Lightly armored Persians that we were faced against were no match for us, and very soon they were routing.

This had been the second attack this day. The First had been fought a few hundred meters from this one, on more open ground. They had sent the same soldiers they had sent now, lightly armored, and hardly able to fight.

While this Victory was something to be proud of, it was only the start. Even now, we had lost two soldiers in the Assaults today, which was a massive hit, seeing as how the Persians easily had Twenty times the number of what we had.

"We retreating to the next position?" George asked.

"No. That way we won't stay in this town for a day. Tie ropes to those cars. Try to pull them back. Fast. They'll be coming with a fresh wave soon enough."

Already, the Persian Army in the distance was moving, reorganizing, getting ready for the next attack.

By the Gods, I hope the Romans arrive soon, otherwise, there won't be anything to save.

"Hurry Up!" I yelled, grabbing one of the ropes, and tugging as hard as possible. The crushed car slid back into place.

 _ **Viscount**_

Those Eagles were something that I was worried about. Yesterday, before Night had fallen, they were nowhere in sight. Now, I could constantly see those white blotches in the sky, flying high above an Army of ten thousand Persians.

The Mortal Checkpoints had caused little to no problem, as we had the easy alibi of evacuating citizens to New York.

"Where are we now, Sabinus?" I asked the Centurion of my Praetorian Guard.

"We're approaching a place called Harrisburg in half an hour. Why?"

A thought I had been having a long time was slowly getting stronger and stronger.

"Is there anything in this place that makes it well defendable."

"Let me check... Uhhh... There's a River. That good?"

"Perfect. Signal on the Radio for every vehicle carrying Soldiers to offload in Harrisburg, and set up defenses. We're going to prepare against the Persians."

"Right away Sir." He said, relaying the info on the comms.

"Can you tell me how many bridges this place has?"

"Five, Sir."

"Malcolm, can you help me plan this?"

"Of Course, Viscount."

Things were coming together.

 _ **Sophia**_

We had left the Amazon headquarters quite a few hours ago now, and ever so often, I found myself seeing more and more troop transports joining us from intersections. Each one carried two hundred amazons, which amazed me even more. The mortals saw us as a Military Convoy, so we were let through each checkpoint without much hassle.

Julius was driving again, and a few minutes ago we had passed Columbia, so there was still quite a long distance to travel.

"Where do you think the Romans are right now?" I asked Julius.

"Probably a few hours from New York. If they didn't get into trouble that is."

"I doubt they would've gotten into anything. There are no real enemies that could've gotten in their way, and Typhon was probably still down south searching for us, so he didn't cause any problems for them."

"You're probably right."

A Few minutes passed without any real talk. Then, Commander Meghan spoke through the Comms.

" _To all vehicles, please slow down. We seem to have run into an inconvenience."_

A small ringing sound came from the radio before it clicked and Meghan kept talking.

 _"Alright, so it seems like we've found something. A Military Checkpoint in ruins. Something came through here. Horatius is checking things out, but even from here it seems like these were Persians."_

"How many could there have been?"

" _Quite a few thousand, by the looks of it. They're on foot, so we might meet them. Then again, there are no fires, and the bodies seem a few days old. Whatever happened, we best be cautious."_

"Alright, got that," Julius said.

"Where could they be going?" I asked him.

"Let's not think about that right now." He muttered.

He was right. The thought of battle could wait.

 _ **Bruce**_

"Why aren't they advancing already?" George asked, annoyed.

"How many are there again?"

"Around Two thousand have been brought forward. That's much more than what they had sent against us the last two times. Retreat?"

"No, we need to get that wall up behind us. Otherwise, the entire camp will be overrun. We hold this place."

"Fine. What should we do then? They'll surely break through this time."

"We'll use Sophia's Idea. Get the Bottles of Fuel. They know to be more cautious of the cars this time, so we'll surprise them with fire."

George repeated my order to everyone else, and it was quickly passed down the line. Soon every soldier held a bottle of petrol, the Hermes Cabin archers ready with unlit fire arrows.

"They're Moving forward."

"Alright. GET READY FOLKS." I yelled, putting my boar helmet back on, and grabbing my electric spear.

Minutes passed, only the slowly growing rumble of thousands of Persians soldiers caused any disturbance.

Then even that stopped.

"They're in front of our wall. Few meters. Archers aren't shooting yet."

"Good. GET READY."

The slosh of flammable liquid seemed audible as everyone pulled back their arm to throw.

"AND-"

An ear-splitting crack interrupted me, and I saw one of the cars in our wall fly from its place, a massive bolt stuck in it.

They had ballistae.

"THROW THEM."

The Bottles arced over the walls, and within a few moments, I heard surprised yells and shattering bottles.

"ARCHERS! FIRE!"

The Archers lit their arrows alight, drew, and fired. The arrows followed roughly the same path the bottles did, and the effect was near-instantaneous. Screams of pain rang out, and very soon the car wall shook as Persians tried climbing it.

A second Car flew from its position as more bolts struck our makeshift wall. The bolts taking out sections of our wall were much larger than what flew over our head.

Persian Soldiers poured in through the gaps, and Greeks rushed to fight them.

"QUICKLY! PUSH CARS!"

Those not in combat rushed to our walls and braced with their shields. Then, as one, we pushed, and once again, the cars toppled onto the panicked Persians.

"FOR THE GODS." I roared, stabbing through the chest of the first soldier I saw.

The carnage the fire had caused was massive, but there were still many more Soldiers left to fight.

A massive Ballista was stationed in an abandoned car park, while smaller ones surrounded it.

"PHALANX!" I yelled, and we interlocked shields. Not a moment later, the Persians crashed against it, making the line buckle a bit, before composing itself.

The archers behind us were constantly letting arrow after arrow into the Persians, but Fifty archers were hardly making a dent in the hundreds of Persians before us.

"STAB!"

Spears entered the bodies of Persians, leaving a pile of bodies in front of us, causing the new row more problems than it did for us.

A blur raced over the battlefield as the Massive Ballistae fired. It took out more Persians than it did Greeks, but the Phalanx was broken.

That was the point when it all became a melee. A Melee where we were outnumbered five to one.

I stabbed Boarhunter into the man in front of me, but a second Persian struck at me, and I dodged in the last second. It cost me my Spear.

The Magical Energy emitted from the destruction of the spear sent everyone flying, even me. Flying through the air seemed like an eternity, before I finally landed on the ground, bashing my head into the hard floor.

Everything went blurred, and I couldn't find the strength to move.

Someone ran over to me, but I couldn't make out who it was.

" _Bruce..."_

"Huh?" I muttered.

"BRUCE!" Everything came back. George stood above me, a Xiphos in his hand. It was bloodied to the hilt.

"What?" I asked, jumping up.

"That fucking Machine over there is giving us hell." He shouted, pointing at the large ballista I had seen. "We have to retreat!"

I thought for a bit.

"You're right. RETREAT!"

George blew into a horn, and not a few moments later we were sprinting to the next line of defense. This was better built than our car wall, though it wasn't as well equipped, cause I had only left a few people here to cover us while we got inside.

Those that still had spears were throwing them into the Persian line, though most went far over them.

We passed a flag on the ground, and I locked eyes with Tatiana, who stood on the walls. She was the mechanic that had worked on these defenses.

She nodded, understanding what I wanted. Without warning, the ground behind me just... disappeared.

Tatiana had told me not to worry about the traps, she'd handle them.

How correct I was to trust her. A gaping trench, too wide to jump, stood between me and the Persians now. That didn't mean I was going to stop. Not until I was safely inside the walls.

Once the gates closed behind me, I was happy to breathe once again, though I didn't wait long, before counting up our losses. Out of the Two hundred and Fifty people I had with me, we had lost more than eighty. Those weren't good odds.

"Tatiana," I said, the moment I saw the girl. "Thank you, for making that trap."

"No problem. If you're good to come, please follow me to the tent I've set up. We have much to discuss."

"Very well. Lead the way."

She led me to a nearby tent. Inside was quite a large map of all the defenses we had.

"Now then. As you saw, we have good defenses, that will be hard to get around."

"That's one thing I didn't understand. Why didn't the Persians attack from the beach?"

"We've got mines all over the place there. Walking along the beach would be suicide. The Persians tried and failed. I'm not really good with strategy, but I did realize the Persians used the Main roads."

"Yeah. My guess is they aren't dumb. They know we're better trained and well equipped. Going through terrain that doesn't allow for a large horde would lead to a massacre on their side. Doesn't mean they didn't try though. It failed pretty fast, so they won't be doing it any time soon."

"Very well. If I know correctly, the first position you held was here." She pointed at the thinnest strip of land between the Atlantic and Fort Pond.

"Yes. We left it cause we didn't have too much cover there. Our next stop was here." I pointed at S Emery Street. "We made a makeshift wall of cars. They worked pretty well at first, but the retreating second wave informed the enemy of our tactic."

"Which was?"

"Wait until they charge the wall, try to climb it, then push the cars on them."

Tatiana laughed.

"That's good. As you can see, we don't have this here. Sandbags surround cars, and we've demolished some buildings to make an impassable bit of wall. We're currently holding this part here."

S Embassy Street. A long bit of road from north to south.

"What about the other group?"

"On the other side? I've talked with Joel, my step-brother that's on the other side, and he said they're also back to this line of defense. Fewer losses though. They've integrated some of the train wagons into their walls."

"What defenses do we have if this falls?"

"We have one line after this before the wall. For the far side, they move slightly back to Tuthill road, while blowing up Industrial Road with high explosives. For us, it'll be S Essex street cutting off to Lake Montauk. No big defenses though, so we wouldn't hold out for long there."

"I see. Well then, let's hope for the best. Good work." And with that, I walked outside.

 _ **Viscount**_

By now, we had been working for hours, and the defenses were nearly complete.

The first thirty minutes had been spent evacuating and blowing stuff up. Since Mortals saw us as military, we had no problem getting them to leave the area. Some of the Children of Vulcan had concocted a mixture of Imperial Gold and whatever else they found, and it worked just brilliantly when we blew up the Bridges.

Only one bridge stood, and most of the Legion was camped nearby. It was this one, the Capital Beltway.

Apart from the Fifth cohort, which I had sent with the Civilians to protect them if the need arose, we were all here.

Cars were being pushed into place and compacted, for use as wall sections.

"Praetor?"

Centurion Mary had finished with sorting out her century, and she had come to join me.

"Yes, Centurion?"

"How long will we last against the Persians with these defenses?"

"Well-"

Malcolm piped up beside me.

"There'll be Ten thousand or so attacking us. This bridge is wide enough for our own walls to allow a lot of Legionnaires on top of them while constricting the Persians into a writhing horde of soldiers."

"What about swimming?"

"No chance of that. There's been quite a bit of rain these past few days, and the river is deep, the current fast. Anybody that tries to cross it will be lucky to survive. Wearing armor and weapons makes that chance practically non-existant. This bridge has three walls, each one with around two hundred meters between them. We've got some ladders and collapsable ramps set up on the second and third wall, so anyone retreating from the walls before them will still be able to get up them. The Children of Heph- I mean Vulcan, have made some traps between the walls. Some of them have to be activated manually by the last man of the retreating soldiers, while others are close enough to the walls that they can be primed from the walls themselves."

"Traps?"

"You'll see." Malcolm grinned.

"Alright, let's get ready for the Persians to arrive at any moment. The Eagles arrived half an hour ago, so they can't be far. The second Cohort will be on the walls. First and Second Century the first wall, Third and fourth on the second, fifth and sixth on the third. If I recall correctly, we have two scorpion ballistae per wall and another six after the third wall. Tell the soldiers to only bring the ballistae if they can safely carry it back. If not, leave it there. We've got some devices on the walls, which make the walls go out with a bang."

"They don't know what's coming," Mary smirked.

A horn blew in the distance a few moments later. It wasn't ours.

The Persians had arrived. As if on cue. A horde slowly marched over the hill, and my eyes widened.

"Gods of Olympus..." Malcolm cursed.

"That looks like there's more than Ten thousand of them."

"GET INTO POSITIONS." I roared, and the order was quickly passed around. "Mary, inform the Centurions of the Second Cohort about our plan. And Hurry."

"At once, Praetor." She said, saluting, before running off, putting on her helmet in the process.

There was easily Fifty thousand of them before us. Probably more.

May the Gods help us.

 _ **Commander Dariush**_

The sweet smell of Victory, I could already sense it. So few Romans, and so many Persians. Three armies had combined into creating this one. Eighty Thousand Soldiers, not to mention two dozen units of Karkadann riders.

As the Nephew of the great king, it is me who commands over the two who lead the two armies that were merged with mine. Commander Mahmud and Arman. Mahmud, the raging fool of a son of Aeshma, and Arman the plotting son of Aka Manah.

Both of them good in a fight, though I doubt they'd need to get involved. Each of us had been sent Forty Immortals straight from the King's Bodyguards. Elite units that would come handy if someone got too close.

I looked at the sight of our army. Majestic.

Persians were fast travelers, partially due to training and determination, partially due to the fact that we had been taught how to bend land as we traveled. My Uncle had told me about he had learned it from Centaurs. Stupid Greek Creatures. Drunks. They talked about it way to openly, before getting turned to dust.

Destroying this small resistance of Romans was going to be easy. Once we were through, we'd go and help Commander Morteza, who can hardly destroy a few greeks with his army of Thirty-Five thousand soldiers. Pathetic.

Today, Roman blood will be shed.

"TODAY! WE WILL SHOW THEIR GODS THAT THEY ARE USELESS!" I roared. The rattle of eighty-thousand shields was enough to make the ground shake.

 **The Romans weren't going to stand a chance.**


	16. Chapter 16

_**Sophia**_

"How're things going?" I asked on the Comms channel. We had been traveling for hours now, following the trail of abandoned campsites and Checkpoints.

" _We've recently passed by Harrisonburg. Around four hours, and we're going to reach the final intersection where soldiers will join us. Another three until we reach New York."_ Ostia's voice came back.

That was another seven hours. Seven hours that the Greeks have to stand against the overwhelming Persian army. Let us hope we won't be too late.

"Julius?" I turned towards the centurion.

"Hmm?"

"Let's say what we're thinking. This trail we've been following, it's a large army."

"Yes..."

"This Army is going after the Romans, no?"

"I fear that they are."

"And do you think they've caught up with everyone?"

"Maybe..."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Viscount isn't as dumb as he sometimes looks. He's got a good brain for strategy, though he isn't a Child of any war god. My bet is he knows he's being followed, and decided to face them head-on, at whatever terrain suits him best, rather than wait for the Persians to catch up."

"So he probably needs our help too."

"All we can hope for is that our journey intersects where he's dug in. The far side of a deep river would be perfect for what he wants to do, seeing as how there's no real unpassable mountainous terrain he can use."

"Well, I'll try to figure out where they could be," I muttered, looking at the GPS.

If Julius was right, and I didn't doubt him, seeing as how what he described was what I would've done, there was only one River that could come into question.

The River Susquehanna. It was large enough to be useful for using it as impassable terrain.

The Only question that still remained was where? There were tons of towns and cities that could come into question.

Trial and error.

 _ **Viscount**_

"THEY'RE MOVING IN THEIR MAIN FORCE!" Mary yelled at me.

Everyone had been in place within ten minutes of the Persian Army arriving. Thankfully, no siege equipment was visible in their ranks, making our jobs a little less impossible.

Two and a half thousand against nearly One Hundred thousand.

"PRIME THE SCORPIONS!" I roared, and I heard the click of the Ballistae as the safety mechanism was turned off.

The shaking of the ground signaled the enemy closing in. Half of the Units they had sent against us slowed down as they got closer to the bridge, before stopping. These were archers.

"Why aren't the Scorpions firing?" I muttered angrily, before ordering the nearest cornicen to blow the signal for fire-at-will.

The notes rang out, and a few seconds later the monotonous thwacking of the Ballistae sounded above the trampling of thousands.

"PILA!" Came the Voice of Centurion Andreas.

I ran up the steps to the third wall the rest of the Legion was lined up behind, just in time to see the Second Cohort's First Century rain their first volley of Pila down on the bunched up Persians. The Lines behind them supplied them with new ones.

"SHIELDS!" This time it was Centurion Ratimir, the Second Century's Centurion.

The Square shields of the Legionnaires were quickly lifted up over their heads to cover them and those that stood before them. Not a second too soon, for arrows started raining down on them. Not in volleys, but in a continuous stream, slowing the speed of Pila Volleys, since it was harder to pass forward new Pila.

I had taken some of the spare shields from the armory and had asked the Children of Vulcan to make some defense for anyone on the Scorpions. So far, they were working really well.

What I could still see before the two other walls blocked my view, was a gradually growing pile of bodies on the bridge, and Persians falling as Scorpion Bolts struck them.

All was going as plan till the Grappling hooks started arcing through the air. Some landed harmlessly on shields, and dropping back into the mass of Persians, while others pulled soldiers with them. Many more found their grip. At this point, the Pilas stopped arcing through the air entirely.

The First clothed figure that climbed over the wall was stabbed in the chest, falling back into the crowd behind him.

And thus, the melee had begun.

"Malcolm!" I shouted, beckoning him to me.

"Yes, Viscount?"

"Do one of those rainbow things again."

"Iris messages?"

"You know what I mean," I growled. "Call Sophia. Ask her where the hell she is. Tell her where we are, and what's happening."

 _ **Sophia**_

"Maybe... Millersburg."

"Doesn't have any bridges. Definitely not that."

"Fuck me." I moaned, putting my forehead against the dashboard. "There are so many places they could be. Are you sure that this is what they did?"

"Definitely. If I would've done this, Viscount would've also done it."

The small buzz of talk behind me suddenly stopped, which I realized very quickly.

"Sophia..." John trailed off.

"Yes?"

No answer came, and I looked at what was happening.

A Rainbow hovered in front of Robert, the face of Malcolm in it.

"Malcolm!" I exclaimed.

"Ah, Sophia. You're there." The Iris Message turned around. "Where are you guys right now?"

"On the way to New York, we've found-"

"Malcolm, enough of the bloody chit-chat." Malcolm was pushed, away and the Iris message blurred a bit, before Viscount's face appeared in it. "Look, we don't have much time. There's an army of around Seventy-Thousand Persians, and the only thing that separates us from them is three makeshift car walls and half a dozen traps. Get here as soon as possible. Harrisburg. We'll try to stall them as much as we can. Please tell me you're bringing something with you other than the Century and the other greeks?"

"We're bringing an entire Amazon army."

"Good. Hurry up. We don't have too much time."

The Iris message ended.

I instantly turned on the microphone and spoke into it.

"Ostia, Meghan. We need to get to Harrisburg as soon as possible. And By that, I mean really fast."

" _It's already in our path. We don't want to speed through everywhere, that'll bring too much mortal attention on us._ "

"The Twelfth Legion is currently trying to defend against this army we've been trailing. Seventy Thousand Persians. They won't survive for long."

" _We can't charge headlong into that army either. We won't have that many soldiers in our army by the time we arrive."_

"The Romans are defending a bridge. If we can get the enemy all onto the bridge, then we can attack them from both ends. That'll surely take them out."

A long silence.

" _Very well. I also realize we can't let this army of Persians join the enemy laying siege to Camp Half-Blood. This is our best chance."_

The comms system clicked, and then Ostia spoke through it. It had switched to the public channel.

" _We're speeding up as much as possible to reach Harrisburg. If we're lucky we can get there in three hours._ "

Better than nothing, but still, that was too much time.

 _ **Chiron**_

After living for so many millennia, it always gave me cold tingles down my spine whenever I wore armor. I was a teacher, not a warrior.

"My dear Centaur, I haven't seen you wear that breastplate since the Battle of Half-Blood hill." Mr. D said.

"Good thing too."

An hour ago, news had arrived that the defenses in Montauk had been pushed back to the more well-built parts. Already an attack of sorts had been repelled, but the people fighting there were tiring.

Bruce was trying his best to lead at the Southern Defensive line, but things weren't going easy.

While fitting on my right arm guard, a rainbow appeared before me.

Upon seeing the person in the rainbow, my sour expression brightened.

It was Malcolm.

"My Boy! It is good to finally hear from you. How is everything going?"

"Not good. Chiron can you do anything to help us? The Roman Legion is currently defending against overwhelming odds here, in Harrisburg. Sophia and the others are on their way here with an Army of Amazons, but I fear even that won't be enough."

"Calm down. I'll think of something. Don't worry."

And just like that, the Message ended. I frowned deeply.

"Dionysus, can you not help them?"

"Help them? They're Romans. Not to mention it's against the Persians. They have their own Gods, their own demigod children so on and so forth. I couldn't help even if I wanted to."

"Then help me write letters. We need to complete them as fast as possible. I know a few wind spirits. They'll help with delivering the letters."

"Fine..." The wine cup in Mr. D's hand turned into a quill, and a piece of paper appeared in his other one. "Who are we writing to?"

"First of all, the Nevada Chapter, Party Ponies."

"Oh... I like where this is going." Dionysus smirked.

I wasn't.

 _ **Bruce**_

At this point, I was sure about their strategy. They were sending in fodder to keep us on our toes, while they calmly set up their siege engines.

This had been the third attack against these walls today. The last one had gotten as far as fighting on the walls.

I wasn't sure if the Persians would continue attacking once daylight faded. It was already sundown, so I was praying to the gods that they'd stop for the day.

The massive gap that had appeared behind us during the retreat had been filled during the first assault. They had filled it with bodies, and just the smell was enough to make me want to empty my bowels.

"Something approaches!" George yelled. The Kid had been hit in the shoulder by a stray Persian arrow, and after he got bandaged up, refused to give his spotter position to someone else.

Half a dozen dark shapes were riding up to the walls and stopped quite a distance from it. They knew we had archers, and were wary of that.

"We come bearing a message from our Commander!" The leader of the horsemen called up to us. "Who is your leader?"

"I am." I stepped forward. "Speak."

"Commander Morteza wants to congratulate you for keeping out for so long. But it's useless to resist. Surrender, and you may keep your lives. If you don't comply, nobody will survive from this pitiful camp. There are many more of us coming. An army twice the size of this one will join us soon, and you will be outnumbered even more. The Greeks are known for their fighting spirit. That we know all too well."

"You are right. What makes you think we'll surrender then?"

"Because you are a good leader. You know that you cannot win. Why resist? Life is better than death."

"No life under you can be good. I'd rather take as many of you as I can to the very bottom of Erebus than watch my friends and family die from Persian Whips, dressed in rags."

"Very well." The Persian said grimly. "Then we-"

The twang of a bow startled everyone, and a moment later, the Persian toppled from his horse. Before the other five could react, they too, were dead.

Our wall hissed as swords were drawn.

"Hold your fire!" Called a voice from the darkness.

"Who are you?" I shouted back.

"Amazons. New York Warehouse."

I breathed a sigh of relief.

"Tatiana, let them in."

"Are you going to trust them?" Liz asked me.

"We need as many warriors as we can get."

A massive line of amazon soldiers emerged into the light that the lamps along the walls gave.

The first of them walked through the gate, and I walked downstairs to greet their Leader.

Each soldier held a spear and shield, a sword at their hip, a bow and a quiver on their back.

"How many of you are there?"

"Eight Hundred. It's all we could collect from the warehouses nearby."

"Very good. Thank you, for joining us."

"No problem, where do you need us the most?"

I thought for a bit.

"There's a wall being built a kilometer or so from here. That way." I pointed towards Lake Montauk. "Can you send half of your Forces there, to be ready for us if we have to retreat from Montauk altogether."

"What about the other half?"

"Split them, half stay here, the other half will defend the other wall. Follow S Edgemere street and you won't miss it."

"Alright, I'll command my troops accordingly. I bring news that your Questers are returning to Camp Half-Blood. They're accompanied by a great army of Amazons." She was about ready to go.

"Wait, before you leave. What's your name?"

"Commander Gwendolyn. And yours?"

"Bruce Hall. Son of Ares."

"Nice to meet you. I'll tell my troops where to go, then I'll join you to fight here."

"Alright."

 _ **Viscount**_

And just like that, I was telling the cornicen to sound the retreat for the first wall. Even from here, I was seeing the two centuries dwindling in number.

Without hesitation, those that remained started running from it all. The last man was one of the Signifiers. Century Two. Gavin. One of the few that remained from the Civil War. He had accompanied us to scouting out Temple Hill. It seemed so long ago now.

A few seconds passed after he had left the walls, and the Persians cheered. Their cheering was short-lived as the device inside the makeshift wall went off, scattering hundreds of Persians.

The rest of the Army behind those that were affected didn't care about the casualties lying on the floor, and upon seeing the opening in the walls, they charged after those that were retreating.

With the end of the Banner every signifier carried, Gavin struck a lever on the side of the road. Nothing happened visibly, but we all knew the trap was primed. As the Persians got closer, they soon realized what was going on.

Four Scorpion ballistae made to automatically fire sprung out from behind the cars strewn across the road and started emptying their clip into the Persians.

The Charge faltered, but it was too late. The Persians were too bunched up, and every bolt found a target.

All soldiers had climbed up the walls, and the ways of getting up had been hauled behind the wall or destroyed.

Very soon, the Scorpions were clicking, their clips having run out.

As one, the heads of these Gatling ballistae flew off, straight towards the Persians. This was something the son of Vulcan in Mary's Cohort, Marcellus, hadn't said to me.

Each head was going fast enough to kill people. They didn't disappoint, and more cries of pain rang out from the Persian army as they collided.

A horn of their own blew, and they quickly retreated to the far end of the bridge.

"What are they up to this time?" I muttered to myself.

"Sir?"

"Oh, nothing Severus. Just talking to myself."

Within a few minutes, the Enemy was once again marching towards the walls. Though this time, there were large creatures marching between their ranks. No longer charging, but slowly marching.

Their ranks opened up, and these weird creatures stepped forward. There were maybe twenty of them. I realized what they were going to do.

"SOUND THE RETREAT!"

Our horn blew, and though the soldiers on the second wall seemed surprised at first, they quickly followed the horn signal.

As the first legionnaires started running down the ramps on the far side of the wall, the Creatures charged.

"RUN!" I yelled.

Those that noticed what was going to happen ran even faster. They weren't going to make it, not if they wanted to activate the trap.

"What trap is there here?" I asked Marcellus.

"Spikes. A row of Stakes that come out of the ground."

I nodded, before jumping over the wall, and landing with a thud against the bridge.

"SIR!" Severus yelled. I wasn't listening, instead, sprinting towards the lever.

The First of these rhinoceros-like creatures crashed through the wall, scattering the cars like paper-maché, and the few soldiers that had been unable to escape with them.

"DROP YOUR WEAPONS AND RUN!" I yelled at those that were still retreating.

Most of them heard me and did just that. We still had quite a few spare weaponry in the armory. Weapons were replaceable. The Soldiers weren't.

Fifty meters until the lever, but the Rhinos weren't stopping, crushing soldiers underfoot.

If even one of those things passed, we weren't going to survive.

Twenty meters.

Those things were getting close.

Ten meters.

The first was about to pass over the stakes, smashing one soldier with their horn.

I kicked the lever on, and the stakes clunked up, tearing open the stomach of the first beast, and skewering the first row.

Looking behind me, I saw Two Centuries following me. Those that had left the walls to defend me.

One of the beasts crashed through the stakes, followed by two more. They didn't survive, but it meant that nothing was stopping the rest except the bodies of the dead.

Very soon, they were doing just that, blood and guts splashing everywhere as their horns tore open the underbellies of those that had keeled over.

A volley of Pila Arced through the air, accompanied by the yell of those soldiers that had followed me.

The Beasts didn't stand a chance. Only one remained, though it had stopped charging, and was instead teetering on its feet. I strode over to it and stabbed it through the eye.

"Thank you, Severus," I called over to him.

A war chant rose behind the corpses of dead beasts, and I joined the shield wall. Severus handed me a Shield.

Hundreds of Persians climbed the hill these Rhino's had created, and they were charging towards us. A second volley of Pila arced through the air, taking most of them before they had even reached the wall of shields. Those that had survived slammed into us, but the Line didn't buckle. Without hesitation, I stabbed at the man in front of me, and he fell sideways, blood blooming from his shirt.

More Persians were jumping over the downed beasts, joining the horde that was in front of us. Another volley of Pila arced behind me, taking out many who were charging at us.

"FOR ROME!" Yelled a new voice, and Centurion Mary, along with another Two Centuries, were jumping over the wall, a few of them carrying scorpions.

Quickly setting up behind us, the Scorpions whittled down the numbers fast, and very soon the Persians were routing. They had learned to fear the Scorpions.

"Good work." Quickly everyone back to the walls. They'll be attacking soon enough."

Marcellus was close by.

"Do you think the bomb is still on the bridge?"

"We can try."

He pressed a button, and the bridge shook. Some Persians were flying through the air.

I smiled.

Compared to how many of us there were, we were doing a damn fine job of defending against the Persians.

 _ **Commander Dariush**_

These damn Romans, they were causing more of a headache then I would've thought.

I had lost all of my karkadann, not to mention the number of soldiers that have already died in the battle. Eight thousand. Much more than I would've wanted to lose. Most of it was from those Scorpion Ballistae the Romans favored so much. Those things were weapons of mass destruction, I'd give them that.

No matter. They were down to one wall. After that one goes down, nothing will help them against the massive amounts of Soldiers I still have.

 **I would not let my prestige go down, cause of a few stubborn Romans.**


	17. Slaughter on the Bridge

_**Viscount**_

Something is off. The Persian Soldiers were at the end of the bridge, that much I could see, but they hadn't attacked for two hours now. The more time they wasted, the more chance there was of Sophia arriving with backup.

"Everything okay Mary?" I asked, looking at the Centurion standing beside me. We had counted up how many we had lost.

Centurion Ratimir and his Optio, Kristia, were both dead in Century Two. Century one had only lost their Signifier, Hendrik. Other than that we also lost close to a hundred and fifty Legionnaires. Most of them had died when those Rhinos had crashed through the wall.

Thankfully when the defenders of the last wall had charged over the wall to defend me, no one had died in the conflict. I wouldn't have been able to bear the thought of people dying for me.

"Yeah. Just thinking."

"About?"

"About how we got here. I've seen too many wars for someone that's hardly eighteen. Too many people who I've known have died in wars that are created by beings so much more powerful than us."

"We can't really do too much. Going against the Gods... That's not a good idea for us Mortals. It's better with the Gods than with anyone else."

"What? Gods no, I didn't mean it like that!" She exclaimed. "I was just-"

"Wait!" I said, scrunching my eyes. The Persians were moving. "TO ARMS!"

Equipment clattered as soldiers took their place in the line of defense.

They were marching in their entire army. Most of the Soldiers were Lightly or moderately armored. We were used to fighting them. However, at the Very front walked the meanest looking soldiers I had ever seen.

Full Golden Plate armor, a Large Square shield, and a sword in their hands. Many of them had other weapons dangling from hips and backs. Axes, longswords, halberds, spears.

This Army stopped just out of the range of our Pila and Scorpions.

"Who leads this rabble?" A voice called out.

"Me." I stepped forward.

That was probably the most foolish move I could've done. Instantly an arrow came flying towards me from the bulk of the Persian Army, only for it to be parried by Mary's Shield. Thank the gods she could react much faster than I could.

Without hesitation, the Persians charged. The Scorpions started firing at them. Six, instead of the two that had originally been placed here.

Persians fell left and right, hundreds dead before even reaching the range of our Pila.

Four Centuries worth of Soldiers stood on the Wall.

"VOLLEY!" I yelled.

We had practiced this move only a handful of times while New Rome was getting rebuilt. I was hoping we could do this without problems.

The First row of Romans Threw their Pila, before ducking. The other rows followed this maneuver until there were no more rows left without throwing Pila.

Doing this once was enough. The Persians were getting too close for the second and third lines to effectively hit enemy soldiers.

"HAND THE PILA TO THE FIRST LINE!" I roared.

Two volleys from the First Row and I could hear Bow Strings being pulled back. Thousands of them.

"SHIELDS!"

The twang of thirty thousand bows sounded otherworldly. The whistle of all the arrows made it feel like we were standing in a storm.

We held against the storm. The scorpions weren't affected since they were well-shielded.

Two arrows had found targets, one of the soldiers dying instantly, while the other one getting struck in the shoulder. They were quickly moved to the back, so they wouldn't get in the way.

The lull in Pila this caused was enough for the first enemies to throw grapples onto the wall. One landed, and stuck, in the wall section right in front of me.

A Persian head crested the wall, not a second later, which seemed too quick to be possible. I stabbed down without hesitation, and the Persian fell back to the ground, gurgling a curse.

"TAKE THE SCORPIONS BACK TO THE LEGION!"

All at once, the scorpions stopped shooting, and they were gone from the walls in the blink of an eye.

Instantly, there were lots more grapples. Some of them were made of rope, while others were made of chains or metal.

We cut what we could, but more kept appearing in the place of those we destroyed.

The draw of bowstrings alerted me again.

"ARROWS! WATCH OUT!"

Shields went up, and the clatter of arrows against the shields soon began.

One person was downed this time. Dead.

Once the clatter of arrows stopped, the first line continued what it had stopped. Stab, Block, Push, stab.

No Persian that stepped foot on the wall stayed alive for long.

We could do this.

 _ **Sophia**_

Thiry minutes.

Those are our best guesses as to when we'll reach Harrisburg.

Two hours had already gone by, and I doubted the Romans were even alive.

If they were though, then we had to do whatever we could.

My friends were jittery. I could feel that. There was less talk, and everyone was fiddling with either a weapon or hair, in the case of Susan.

"Sophia."

Julius was looking at me.

"Yes?"

"Call Ostia. I'm fairly certain we're close enough to Harrisburg, that we need a plan of attack."

"Yes... Yes... You're right."

I grabbed the radio, dialing in the private channel.

"Ostia? Can you hear me?"

 _"Yes, Sophia. What's the problem?"_

"We need to discuss our strategy."

 _"That is true... Very well. What's your plan?"_

"What units do we have?"

A bit of silence. Probably as she did the maths.

 _"Five Thousand and Two hundred Soldiers. Around that number. We have the full unit of the Hunters of Artemis. That's Eighty. Then there are you guys. Romans and Greeks. Around thirty, though I doubt you'll be forming a battalion of your own. Along with the soldiers, we have around Two Hundred Armed Forklifts. A Scorpion on the back of each and the front isn't much safer."_

"The Amazons. How many Archers and Close-Combat soldiers do we have?"

 _"Amazons are trained for both ranged and Close-Combat."_

"That's a handy thing to have," Julius muttered.

"Alright. Then can I suggest something?"

 _"Whatever you want."_

"Battalions of Five Hundred. The Two Hundred that remain, the Hunters of Artemis, and Us, we will all form our own Battalion. A part of the forklifts can charge into the enemy, dealing massive damage, while the other part stays with the battalions, covering them with Scorpions."

 _"And should we try shooting the enemy with arrows first, or make straight for the melee?"_

"If the Romans aren't already dead, then they'll most probably be fighting for their lives. The Persians rely on hordes of soldiers to overwhelm. That'll mean Romans and Persians will be bunched up as one. Point blank might be a good idea, but otherwise, we run the risk of hitting our own units."

 _"Alright. I'll relay this info to everyone. Once the Persians are a Visible distance from us, we'll stop, and form up. Thank you."_

Thirty Minutes.

Please let the Romans Survive.

 _ **Viscount**_

Bodies were starting to pile up so high at the bottom, that they were making climbing over the wall much easier for the enemy.

The Defensive line on the wall was breaking. The Arrow Volleys the enemy let off allowed the Persian troops to close in much faster.

Two places were already filled with Persians instead of Romans.

"FALL BACK!" I yelled.

Those that could, did. But many were locked in combat.

Me, Mary, Severus and Sabinus still stood on the wall. Somehow, we had to get these soldiers off the wall. I would not be blowing these walls up while Romans were still defending it.

"Let's help them!" I told them, charging forward, cutting at the head of a Persian soldier that was just appearing at the top of a chain grapple hook.

They followed me, and very slowly, our numbers grew, as those we had freed from the combat joined us. Of course, there were more Persians reaching the top behind us, but we weren't stopping long enough for them to catch up.

I was reaching the first break, being held by half a dozen Romans versus an ever-increasing Persian horde.

Right before we reached the line of Romans, Sabinus held up his shield, and I jumped, using that to propel myself up and over the line of defense.

Two had been cut down before I had even landed, placing a shield under me for extra protection.

Another fell as I landed, and then the Romans were covering me with their shields. We were pushing through them very quickly, and very soon, we reached the far side, with another half a dozen soldiers defending from the Persians.

Now there were Forty of us running down the remaining section of the wall, and it was steadily growing as more and more duals were broken up by our charge.

We were probably ten meters from the far end of the wall, and all I saw was the Persian Army, slowly marching down the ramps to the far side. No more Romans.

"OKAY. NOW RETREAT. KEEP YOUR HEADS LOW. THE SCORPIONS MIGHT START FIRING!"

Eight scorpion ballistae were set up for this last line of defense. Not to mention one and a half thousand Pila.

We jumped from the Wall, not caring to find a ramp.

I knew that at least one of the children of Vulcan was watching this wall, and I was hoping to the Gods that they'd figure out what to do.

"RUN!" I yelled.

But there was no need to do so. Everyone was doing just fine without my help. In no time we had reached the line of Scorpions.

Then, and only then, did the wall of cars explode. Remenants of Weapons, shards of metal and glass from the cars and other deadly things went flying through the air, a fiery ball of fire following them, incinerating any Persian that was close enough to feel it.

While I watched, the Third Cohort's First Century rushed past me, quickly followed by the second and third. They encircled the Scorpions, and held their shields up, ready for a charge, or a volley of arrows. Each Century was stocked with Pila.

It didn't take long for the smoke to clear, but the Persians weren't moving. What were they planning?

 _ **Commander Dariush**_

That Fool!

Charging forward once the wall had been cleared was a dumb idea, and I had told him to wait for my commands. Now all I could think of was the wall exploding, sending shrapnel into the contingent of Immortals surrounding Mahmud.

I had no idea if he had survived, but I highly doubted it, if I were to look at the number of Immortals that had survived with him.

We had to retreat for now. The Romans had no more of these stupid walls thankfully. I had lost way too many men in these small battles than I had planned.

I signaled the hornblower, and he blew the signal for retreat. We didn't go to the very end of the bridge this time, rather just simply regrouping where the second wall had been.

"What are you doing you, idiot?" Came a very familiar voice.

Mahmud was striding through the ranks of soldiers. He was easily a head taller than everyone else and carrying a dual-bladed axe in his hand.

"Ah, you aren't dead!" I mused. "That is good to hear, however, please refer to me as Sir in the future. The King has given me command of this army, and I will not be called an idiot."

"THEN WHAT ARE YOU DOING RETREATING?"

"We just lost a few hundred soldiers, which wouldn't have been a problem, if you wouldn't have charged forward, disobeying my order. How many Immortals do you have left?"

"Twelve."

"Are you serious? You wasted Twenty-Eight of the King's personal bodyguard, just cause you wanted to commit suicide?"

"Now listen here-"

"No, you listen to me. Do that again, and after this battle is over, I will throw you in front of the king for treason. You understand?"

I could see him fuming, but I knew he wouldn't dare say a word. Slowly, he nodded.

"Now go. Tend to what you have to tend to. We'll be charging at the enemy quite soon."

He turned around and stomped off.

"Arman!" I called. The Other Commander had quickly accepted that I commanded over him, and I felt constantly scared in his presence. He was a dark and brooding figure, and his eyes gave off the feeling that I wouldn't survive a night when sleeping in close proximity to him.

"Yes, Commander?" He said.

"Please arrange our soldiers to best fit what the Romans have prepared for us. Tell me once you're finished."

"At once." He hissed.

A shudder ran down my spine.

 _ **Valentina**_

This battle would be a failure. I could see it. With the arriving reinforcements, the Persians would be crushed. Yet Genghis wasn't letting us intervene. His presence might swing the battle in favor of the Persians.

"Can we-"

"No. I will not fight in a battle they are bound to lose."

"But those that are fighting on the side of the enemy killed your brother."

"They did. But they're also arriving with Five thousand Amazon Soldiers, and I am just one being. Strong, yes. Immortal, no."

"Then what are we still doing here?"

"We'll be trying to save the leaders, but only once they have no other options left. I'd happily let them die in battle, but this King wants them to survive above all else."

"So we're just going to sit in the air, invisible, while they get slaughtered?"

"Get used to this feeling Girl. War is rarely a glorious notion." It grinned.

 _ **Viscount**_

The Legion was now in full alert. No more slacking before the enemy charged.

This was going to be the last fight. The one to decide who walked away alive. It could have been the last one, but for whatever reason, the Persians had decided to retreat, instead of running after us. They must've had their reasons.

The march of thousands sounded like an earthquake. It seemed like we hadn't even made a dent in their numbers. There were still so many.

"Where are the Amazons?" I muttered, my eyes darting to the distant hills, waiting for the miraculous appearance of reinforcements.

Malcolm stood beside me, a greek shield and Xiphos in his hands. We had always had a few of them in our armory, just in case someone needed it. Malcolm had been happy at the notion of fighting with Greek weaponry.

"They should be here in a few minutes at best." He said.

"We don't have a few minutes."

A war cry went up from the Persian force, and the march turned into a charge.

They entered the range of the Scorpions, and instantly Persians were falling left and right. The ones that died in the first lines made those behind trip and fall.

These war machines were terrifyingly powerful.

"PILA!" Came the order, that I myself had uttered too many times in the past few hours.

Hundreds of Pila arced through the air, hitting the bulk of the charging Persians.

Two more Pila volleys were thrown by the First few lines of the Centuries which surrounded the Scorpions before the Persians crashed into the line. It was weak, and those that did reach the shield wall were quickly dispatched.

Lines further back started throwing Pila of their own, but arcing them more.

It seemed like no significant Persian groups could reach our line.

The creaking of thousands of bows quickly made me realize that this situation wouldn't last.

"ARCHERS!" Yelled Centurion Dion, of the Third Cohort's First Century.

Shields went up, and since I was quite far from the front line, it was the first time I got to witness an Arrow volley from the Persians.

A wave of shadows covered the ground, and it seemed like night itself was advancing towards us in a wall of doom.

The arrows clattered against the shields, like hail on the roofs of houses. There were so many arrows, that some were no doubt able to find themselves through the tiny gaps between shields.

From where I stood I didn't see any casualties, as I had seen on the wall, but I saw bodies being carried out from the ranks of Legionnaires.

Once again, the lull in Pila volleys allowed way more Persians to reach the shield wall.

We weren't going to win without Sophia.

All we could do now is hold out until they saved us.

 _ **Sophia**_

"EVERYONE, LINE UP!"

Now that Ostia had new clothes and armor, she was even more of a Commanding presence on the field.

The Thousands of armor-clad Amazon Warriors surrounding her also helped her look the part.

"Alright. The enemy is over that hill. Sixty Thousand Persians. They aren't great odds, but we have some important info. They're fighting on a bridge. Meaning, if we attack them from behind, they won't stand a chance!"

The Amazons cheered.

"TO GLORY!"

Thousands repeated this cry.

The Engine of Fifty battle forklifts roared to life, before driving slowly up the hill.

As they rolled, each warrior clashed their spears against their shields. The quiet clash of the Persians fighting the Romans was completely overcome by the deafening clash of thousands of weapons.

I just hoped we weren't that late. That the Legion still had enough men to function.

 _ **Viscount**_

The Fourth Scorpion was down. We weren't doing well. Not by a long shot. Ten minutes had passed, and in that time, we had lost the second line of Scorpions. At least Two Hundred Legionnaires had died, though maybe more.

I couldn't see the Third Cohort's Second, Third, and Fourth banner anymore.

A few more minutes, and I'd doubt we'd have much of a third cohort left.

"Alright. Mary Get the First Cohort together. We're going to move in. The Third Cohort won't survive for much longer."

"At once, Sir."

Horns blew, and Cohorts moved.

The Fourth Cohort moved behind the Third, and the First behind the Fourth. That way we wouldn't get pushed back too hard. The remaining four Scorpions I had brought back behind the Fourth, for defensive purposes.

"AND NOW!" I yelled. The Horn blew once to inform everyone of the order. The Third turned around and ran as fast as they could. "FIRST COHORT, FORWARD. BRING THE EAGLE!"

Michael Scott, the Legion Standard Bearer hefted the Eagle high.

"FOR ROME!" Came the War Cry, and Six Hundred Charged past both cohorts.

With a crash, our two lines met, and the Persians stood now chance. Lines and lines of Persians fell every second.

But slowly, the charge slowed to a halt, and that was it. We were back in the shield wall formation.

Only now, the Scorpion bolts raining down on the enemy were accompanied by bolts of lightning, arching through tens of Persians every time it thundered.

As arrows started raining down on us, the testudo formation was taken up, meaning that the bolts of lightning became less frequent.

A cry went up in the Persian ranks.

" _Los Immortales!"_ It sounded.

That didn't sound good.

The ranks of the Persian soldiers opened up, and a golden hue appeared in the otherwise brown mass of Persians.

It was those soldiers I had seen march in tightly packed groups, dressed in golden armor.

There wasn't a lot of them, but it very quickly became clear that they were elite. The First row of them jumped onto the shields, stabbing downwards.

I felt panic ripple down our line. With the assault of these golden warriors, we wouldn't have a line to hold for much longer.

"RETREAT!"

We would have to give ground. No matter what, the Persian Army couldn't flank us, or break into our line. That would be catastrophic.

The horn signal went up, and we ran. I saw a Scorpion Bolt hit one of these golden warriors, but instead of collapsing, it just looked at the thing that had impaled him, and slowly pulled it out.

Another three Bolts hit him, and he went down. They weren't unkillable then.

As I ran, a distant war cry made me whip my head towards the sound.

A few moments later, a few dozen forklifts came rumbling over the hill.

The Amazons.

We were saved.

The Forklifts reached the bottom of the hill as we passed by the Fourth Cohort's ranks. Thousands of Soldiers appeared on top of the hill, marching straight towards us.

We were saved.

The clashing of weapons renewed as the Persian Light Infantry crashed against the Shields of the Fourth Cohort.

 _ **Valentina**_

"What are you doing now?" I asked, looking at the semi-transparent being floating beside me. Only I could see him, nobody else.

"I may have misjudged the power of the Persians."

"I'm still fairly certain they're going to die."

"Those Immortals broke an entire line in a matter of seconds, while only losing three soldiers. And there's still at least fifty thousand Persians still remaining."

"So are you going to join in on the battle?"

"Yes. We are."

"You mean-"

"If you dare to run, I will personally quarter you."

I gulped. Fighting in the shadows was one thing. In open battle, I wasn't so sure of myself.

"Alas, you are not a warrior. Subterfuge is always helpful, but it doesn't require weapons a battle would need. Here, this will help for now."

Black armor appeared over me, and a jagged looking sword was at my hip.

"Alright. We can go."

I closed my eyes, ready to feel the power this beast possessed wash over me.

Gasping, I was no longer invisible. Instead, I stood at the far end of the bridge, where most of the Persian army still stood. They had seen the Amazons and were getting ready to fight.

"DO NOT ATTACK US. WE SERVE YOUR KING." The beast yelled.

The few soldiers that had focused on our appearance turned back towards the Amazon Forklifts rumbling towards them.

Arrows flew up into the sky, clattering harmlessly against the war machines.

"Iron tipped arrows." Genghis sneered.

Lifting his hand, a ball of black energy flew towards the forklifts. Upon contact, it exploded, disintegrating six of them.

A Massive Hammer appeared in his hand, and it strode forward, growing in size.

The Creature was now easily two and a half meters high once it finished. It growled as the first forklift reached it. Scorpion bolts were raining down on the Persians, but the main target was now the black beast standing before all of us. The bolts didn't seem to hurt it too much.

As the first forklift got close to it, they learned not to do it again. The hammer crashed down on the forklift, turning it into scrap metal.

Then Ghengis charged towards the Forklifts, disappearing into thin air while doing so.

It appeared on top of one of them, this time holding a sword, and plunged it into the driver's compartment, before turning around chopping the woman manning the scorpion in half, along with the actual scorpion and the armor surrounding it.

 ** _Sophia_**

"What in the name of Olympus is that thing?" Ostia asked.

A dark blot was moving between forklifts and destroying them in the blink of an eye.

Beside Ostia stood Petra and her eyes widened.

"I know those movements. That color."

"What?" Ostia turned to look at the Commander.

"It's the creature that attacked us in Tulsa. The one that killed the Previous Commander."

"God damn it. It's wrecking our forklifts. Only two have reached the Persians, as I can see, instead of the full fifty. Sophia, you know anything about this creature."

I was, in fact, thinking about what this was.

"It looks like the thing that attacked us on the train," John muttered.

I looked at John, hoping to the gods that this wasn't one of them.

Daniel had specifically told me not to fight them again. Not to mention the fact this creature seemed more powerful than the thing that had interrupted our train ride.

"If it is that, then we're not getting away from this battle without big losses."

"Not if I have anything to say about it," Ostia grunted. "CHARGE!"

Roars went down the Amazon line, as the order was blown, and so, we charged.

Upon noticing us charging, the creature stopped destroying the forklifts and looked at us. Looked at me.

I could feel its eyes lock with mine, which should have been impossible.

It teleported away, but I didn't see it reappear on the battlefield.

Within a few seconds, I could see individual Persian soldiers stand out in the mass of Soldiers before us.

"FIRST COHORT'S FIRST CENTURY. FOR ROME!" Julius roared, and the Romans yelled with him.

A massive bolt of lightning came down from the sky, larger than any other I had seen.

It struck the heart of the Persian Force, arcing between hundreds of them.

Then we collided.

Persians crumpled before us, and Panic quickly spread in their ranks.

I wished my sword into my hand, and instantly threw it, before wishing it back, and cutting at another soldier.

At one point John and Apollo were beside me, and it seemed like John had forgotten about the grudge he had against his father.

Back to back, they stood, shooting arrow after arrow at anything and everything that came close.

Robert was swinging the large battle-axe he had found in the Amazon warehouse, while Susan was spreading confusion in the ranks of Persian. Sowing fears, and thoughts of traitorous acts.

Desdemona and Rebecca were working together, Rebecca summoning skeletons of different ages, and making cracks in the ground, while Desdemona hid them with the power of Mist.

As for the Amazons and Hunters, they too, fought with a ferocity only one group of Demigods could overcome.

The Romans.

Julius leading them deep into the Persian lines, they looked unstoppable. Julius' Armor and sword were sparkling with electricity, and with every strike lightning arced from him into dozens of Persians.

The rest of them followed their Centurion, the thought of avenging brothers and sisters in arms burning like fire in their soul.

I doubted anything would stop them.

Thousands crumbled before us. Nothing would stop us. Nothing.

Someone in black armor stood out from the crowd. She, for it, was a girl, standing in between the ranks of Persians, with eyes closed. Her face seemed vaguely familiar.

"TIPANI!" Julius yelled, surprising the girl. At least four dozen Amazons collapsed, and the girl gasped. An aura of red surrounded her.

She held out her hands, and this red energy flew out, killing even more amazons.

This couldn't happen again, so I made a beeline towards her, ducking and weaving between Persian soldiers, stabbing at anything I could.

It seemed that Julius had had the same Idea, for he too stood in the little circle that surrounded the girl. The Persians feared her too. Thankfully the soldiers were more focused on the Amazons, rather than us, so we were left alone.

"Valentina. You traitorous-"

"No Julius." She screamed. "The Romans are traitors for abandoning me. They exiled me..." She seemed to lose some of that strength she had possessed while I ran towards her.

"You killed someone. Those things can't go unpunished you know that." He growled.

"It wasn't- I didn't..."

She was at a loss for words.

"We all saw you do it. Don't deny it."

Tears streaked down her face.

"I don't know what got over me then. I didn't want to do it. You know me. I didn't want to become... An exile."

"Why did you join the Augur then? You could have remained in exile instead of joining someone who you knew wasn't right in the head."

"I wanted to return and- and-"

Suddenly a black figure appeared behind her and struck at Julius with a massive hammer. He only just managed to roll away.

"Traitors will remain traitors..." The Creature said.

With one move, he smacked her to the side. Ribs audibly cracked.

Julius yelled in anger, and I felt the tinge of ozone in the air.

Lightning blasted the creature, who yelled in pain.

The Old centurion charged, and I followed his lead and did the same.

He stabbed the thigh of the beast, while I threw my sword into its arm.

With a pop, it disappeared.

Instantly Persians closed in, and Julius and I stood back to back. Anyone that got too close didn't survive for long.

Thankfully, the Amazons were quickly pushing forward, and we managed to melt back into the mass of soldiers.

I found Valentina on the ground not a few moments later.

"No. Don't kill her," I told the Amazon next to me. It looked to me as if her service to the Augur and Tartarus hadn't exactly been out of her own free will. I dragged her behind the line of Amazon shields.

Screams of Amazons sounded up, and I whipped my head towards it. The Black thing was now popping in and out of existence over the Amazon Army. It was taking chunks out of it with mighty Hammer swings.

We had already managed to hurt it, but it still seemed more than powerful enough to cause problems.

"Take me with you to fight Genghis..."

It was Valentina. Her face was pale, her breathing ragged, and her arm stood in an angle that wasn't normal.

"You'd just die. I can't."

"I have to... I've made mistakes... Please." She pleaded.

I knew who she was. What she had done. And frankly, I wasn't too keen to help her.

But still, I hauled her onto her feet and guided her towards the creature. Valentina had called it Genghis.

We got closer and closer until the Genghis locked eyes with us.

"You? You dare come before me? After betraying me, and killing my brothers?" He aimed that last one at me.

"I will not let you kill these people. I supported the Augur cause he seemed like my way back into the Camp I loved. This isn't what I signed up to."

"Coward." It spat, moving forward

Valentina held up her arm, and the creature started visibly struggling, every step getting slower and slower.

"NO!" It yelled, before disappearing once again.

"Where will he appear again?" I asked. Valentina was now standing on her own two feet.

A pop sounded from behind me, and I only just managed to dodge the hammer strike aimed at me.

"Give up!" I yelled. "We've won. There's many more of us than you!"

"You underestimate my strength, girl. Once I'm finished with you two, I'll wreak havoc on this puny army, before destroying the Romans."

And it swung again. I was a millisecond away from getting struck by the hammer, only just managing to go prone before it whistled past me.

A horn blew in the distance, and I looked at the monster. It too seemed confused.

We weren't expecting any more armies.

Slowly, thousands of cavalry crested the hill.

"No..." The Creature whispered. "I didn't see their arrival."

I struck at its hammer, cutting it in half. Robert, John, and Apollo came rushing from the crowd of Amazons, Robert chopping through the Arm of Genghis, while Father and Son shot arrow after arrow into the beast.

"I. WILL. BE. BACK." It boomed. And like that, it was gone. It wasn't dead, but I could feel that it wasn't returning to this battle.

The cavalry started charging down the hill with a massive yell.

"PARTY PONIES!" They yelled, and my heart lifted. Centaurs.

There was one Persian flank left unoccupied, and the Centaurs were charging straight for that part.

"HEART OF TEXAS CHAPTER. HELL YEAH!" One group roared as they charged. Many more did the same, but by then many different groups screamed as one, and I couldn't hear them.

As the Centaurs crashed into the line, the Amazons continued their push.

Thousands fell before us. There were no arrow volleys or anything that resembled a well-thought-out defense. It was every man for himself.

The enemy crumbled.

They wouldn't surrender, and retreating wasn't an option anymore.

In only a few minutes we were standing on the bridge. I could see soldiers turning around from the Roman lines to join in on this fight.

 _ **Commander Dariush**_

"FIGHT YOU FUCKING FOOLS." I roared, spittle flying out of my mouth.

A roman soldier ran tried bashing me with his shield, but I side-stepped, grabbing his shield, pulling him from the line, and cutting down deep into his neck.

But the line was instantly plugged up.

I had sent Arman with his Immortals to help fight against the Amazons. However, it seemed like it was too late. A strange black creature had fought against the Amazons, easily killing more than my soldiers would ever, but that thing was now lost. Dead, or who knows what.

We wouldn't win, that was for sure now. But if I were to die, I'd do something that would be worthwhile.

I spotted the target. A Purple plumed helmet, surrounded by half a dozen soldiers.

The Praetor.

"Immortals. AFTER ME!" I roared, jumping onto the shields of the testudo like the immortals had done quite a few times by now. Only, I didn't stop to stab down on the soldiers underneath me. Instead, I continued towards the Praetor.

He seemed to realize what I was doing and started issuing orders.

I didn't have a lot of Immortals left. Though they didn't have any more scorpions, they had taken out quite a few of the Immortals before getting destroyed.

Twenty Immortals ran with me.

We landed on the far side, and instantly legionnaires surrounded us. Many were cut down by the Immortals. They didn't stand a chance.

"Make a way for me," I ordered, and very soon a path straight for the Praetor was made. I ran.

His bodyguards ran in front of him to defend. I kicked the first one's shield, before striking at his shin. I stabbed a second one through the chest, and a third received a deep cut to her neck. Women were never meant to fight.

Two closed in on me. One of them wore a Centurion Helmet. I dodged his swing, and chopped deep into his wrist, making him drop his shield. The next strike stopped his screams as the blade connected with his face.

I flipped the blade around and jumped off of the ground, spinning around, and landing right before the Legionnaire. He looked surprised, but he didn't live long to realize just exactly what I had done.

Only one remained. Another woman. Her helmet also had a red crest on it. From what I could make it, she had the letter "I" on her chest.

I smirked.

Before I could do anything, the Praetor stepped before the woman.

"You are clearly losing, yet you still risk your life to kill me?" He asked.

I sneered.

"Do not kill her. It was wrong to let my Praetorians die without helping them." He looked sad. "Duel me, and spare her."

"I will do no such thing." And lunged forward.

Quick as a flash, the Praetor pulled out a sword, and blocked my strike. He was fast.

It seemed like I had finally found a worthy opponent. I managed to nick his inner thigh, but he gave a glancing blow to my arm.

Two more of my hits landed on the Praetor, and he took a few steps back.

That's when the woman who the Praetor had decided to save jumped at me with sword raised.

Pain flared in my arm, as she cut through my left wrist.

"YOU BITCH!"

I struck her in the side with my sword, and I heard her whimper.

Grinning maniacally, I turned to look back at the Praetor. He was charging straight for me, his eyes crying bloody murder.

The Adrenaline was helping dull the pain of my hand, but fighting with only one hand was tiring, and I took a step back. Then another.

NO. I can't let this Roman idiot defeat me.

I kicked his legs out from underneath him, which he didn't expect in the slightest.

With a grunt, he hit the floor, and I stood above him.

"You were a worthy enemy," I said. "Say your last words, Praetor."

"Fuck you." He muttered.

I laughed.

But the laugh turned into a gurgle as something plunged into my side. More pain flaring up. Glancing over, I noticed a Pila sticking through my side. In the distance kneeled the woman. Her hand still in the throwing position.

"Fucking-"

The Praetor Rammed his sword in my chest. The Iron felt cold. This could not be how I die.

Not how I die.

I spat in the face of the Roman, and tightened the grip on my sword, gathering my remaining strength for one final stab. One life for one.

"Do it." The Praetor Growled.

With Pleasure.

Then I felt the bite of cold metal on my neck, and everything went black.

 _ **Viscount**_

In front of me stood the decapitated body of the Persian Commander, for his armor showed some sort of rank.

Behind him was Malcolm, his face drenched in blood.

"Thank you." I dropped the sword, and the body fell with it.

Only one thought was on my mind. Mary.

Running over to her, I saw that things were bad. Her side was drenched in blood, and her face was pale.

"Don't Worry. We'll get a doctor." I said, starting to panic.

She opened her mouth to say something, but I shushed her. She shouldn't talk right now.

I pressed a piece of cloth to her chest, but it was quickly drenched in blood. Malcolm fed her some Ambrosia, which gave some of her colors back.

"Why-"

"You shouldn't talk. You need every bit of strength."

"Drake. Stop... Stop Worrying."

Hardly anyone ever used my first name, and those people that did weren't necessarily from the Legion.

I stopped fussing over her for a second. I told Malcolm to tend to the Praetorians. See if anyone was still alive.

"Why- Why did you step in front of me."

"I didn't want to see you die. I had just watched-"

"But why?"

"Cause you're my friend... Cause."

"We both know that's bullshit." She smiled.

She lifted her torso up.

"No, don't mo-"

I was stopped in my tracks by a kiss.

"You're cute when you worry." She commented once she pulled away from the kiss.

For a second, her face regained its full color. But it quickly changed when a pulse of pain ran through her body.

"Argh... It hurts." She groaned.

"I know... I know. We'll get a doctor here as soon as possible."

She smiled, and I smiled back. It was weird, but we were happy right now. She was probably mortally wounded, and hundreds of Romans had died, but that was something to worry about later.

Right now, I was content with the feeling of that warm kiss.

 _ **Sophia**_

Viscount had talked about the walls they were building. It seemed like we had just passed the first one. Or what remained of it.

Bits of scrap metal littered the road, and older bodies were also strewn out on the sides of the road. My guess was there had been much more, but most had gone over the side.

The Combined Forces of the Amazons and Centaurs allowed us to quickly push through the Persian lines. I could already see the Second wall, with a few carcasses of large-bodied beasts, pushed to the side.

"Sophia! Something is coming!" John yelled from the closest forklift. He, Apollo and many Amazon Archers had now taken up their spots on the forks of the forklifts.

"What is it?"

"Golden."

"Golden what?"

"They're Golden Warriors."

"So Not good?"

"Yeah. That was my guess too."

We couldn't stop now. The Persian army was down to its last few thousand soldiers.

So we continued. Persians fell to sword and spear, to arrows and Scorpion Bolts, to rocket arrows and whizzing boxing gloves and whatever else the Party Ponies had.

A few minutes passed, and the Golden warriors appeared for me too. They gave a golden yellow hue to the army of brown-cloaked Persian soldiers.

I knew when they made contact with the Amazons, cause the entire line staggered as if hitting a brick wall.

Golden warriors were leaping over the Amazons, cutting at whatever they could, before landing behind our lines and causing mayhem and chaos.

One was struck in the throat my Apollo, and it went down without putting up any more of a fight.

I strode forward and met with one of the soldiers, who instantly swung at me.

Parrying, I stepped closer to them and stabbed at his chest, but he jumped over me, and I only just managed to bring up my sword to parry the next blow.

I threw my sword, but he hit it mid-air, making it fly sideways, but I simply willed it to appear in my hand again, and it did so.

Again, and again I threw, but every time it was parried.

Then it swung at me the second it parried the next throw.

I blocked the swing with my vambrace, and landed a punch in its face, surprising it.

Its helmet fell off, and I saw that it was a man.

He pulled his sword back, ready to strike again, but suddenly, he straightened out, before collapsing into my arms.

I dropped him instantly.

Three arrows protruded from his back.

I nodded my thanks to John, who wasn't even concentrating on me by then.

Looking around, I noticed Queen Ostia.

She was fighting a man, dressed differently from everyone else. Probably the Commander.

I made a beeline straight for that fight, reaching the man, and stabbing at his thigh. He moved his leg, and it only grazed him.

He growled, before taking a few steps back to look at the situation he was in.

Beatrice was lying on the floor nearby. Her face had a deep cut on it. She was dead.

Ostia and I moved as one. The man, probably knowing that Ostia had the Belt of Queen Hippolyta, dodge her strike, and parried mine.

What nobody suspected was for someone else to join the fight.

The Man gasped, which was the last sound he made before his head flopped forward, being held by a tiny bit of skin and gristle.

Julius looked at the man with disgust in his eyes.

"That was for my Century." He muttered, wiping the blade on the man's cloak.

The other golden warriors were dispatched soon after. Meanwhile, the Romans had managed to push the enemy back, and all that remained of the Persians was the small strip of soldiers between the Second and Third wall.

So we kept on pushing.

It didn't take too long, and finally, the First Persian threw down his weapon. Like a wave, it passed through the ranks of the Persians.

They then all kneeled down.

" _COBARDES!"_ Yelled a thickset man, surrounded by eight more of these golden warriors.

The Golden warriors then started to execute the Persians. One by one. Decapitation.

Both of our lines had stopped once we saw the Persians surrender, and frankly, I didn't know what to do.

The Soldiers stood up, but this time they look at the Golden Warriors, who were executing everyone that was close enough to them.

Without hesitation, they started charging towards these golden warriors, who were very quickly overpowered by the sheer force of Persians.

Only the Commander survived. He was hefted above the head of the Persians and carried towards the Romans.

There he was placed.

 _ **Viscount**_

With Horror, I had watched the Persians tear apart these Golden Warriors that had started executing them.

Now in front of our shield wall kneeled the Commander, who was brought in front of us by his very own men.

The Man was screaming curses in Spanish, but the Persians no longer cared. The Man was harmless. His legs and hands tied with the chains of grapples.

"What should we do with the man?" Centurion Stevens asked.

"I doubt he'll give us info, and he'll just take up space."

"So..."

"Execute him."

"Are you sure?"

"He has killed too many of our men to be forgiven."

"Who should-"

"I will," I muttered, stepping forward. Sword in hand.

"You. You Good man. I see it. Spare me." The Man said, panic spreading on his face.

I stepped forward, and the man's face turned pale.

"WORTHLESS ROMAN DOG!" He screamed.

He stopped when my sword pierced his chest, though his eyes still screamed bloody murder. Then all life left his body. He was just one more of the dead that had died this day.

As for the Persians, they could live.

I looked at the Persians.

"Does anyone speak English?" I asked.

One man stepped forward.

"Yes. I do."

"What is your name?"

"Simón."

"Very well. Simón. Tell your brothers in arms that they are free to go. On one condition. We will send a nice message to your King. If you return to him, I'm fairly certain he won't be happy with your betrayal."

"What does that mean, sir?"

"Do not rejoin the Persians. No matter what."

"Very well."

He translated my request to Spanish.

"Now go."

They turned around and walked off. The Amazons parted to let them through.

Most of them were dropping their armor and remaining weapons.

These men wouldn't fight for no man any more.

The battle was won.

 **Thank the Gods.**


	18. The Wrath of a God

_**Sophia**_

The last of the Persians passed by us, and I instantly ran towards Viscount.

"Sophia." He smiled. Dozens of cuts covered his arms and legs, and his eyes showed how tired he was. "Thank the Gods for your arrival."

"Do you need any more doctors?"

"Anyone is welcome. I doubt we have anyone that isn't hurt."

"JOHN! APOLLO!"

"Apollo?" Viscount questioned. "You mean the-"

"Yes. We found the god."

His eyes widened.

They both ran out from in between the Amazon Ranks, looking for me. Our eyes locked and they stood beside me in no time.

"Boys, get together as many healers as you can, and start healing those that need it the most."

"Of course," Apollo said, and they both jogged off.

"Before we discuss what will happen next, let me call together the Centurions."

"I'll do the same with our army."

"We're going to discuss things here."

I walked back to the army, looking for Ostia. She was talking with Petra.

"Ostia."

She turned towards me, smiling, though her eyes were red.

"Viscount wants to bring together a war council. We need you there."

"Alright. I'll go."

"Bring anyone else you want to give a lead role."

She nodded.

I looked for Julius and found him kneeling beside the body of a Roman Woman.

It was Septia, the Standard Bearer of the First Century.

"Julius."

He looked up, and I saw anger in his eyes.

"Viscount needs you."

"Very well."

"Bring Everyone from your Century. They can rejoin the Romans."

His shoulders drooped, before agreeing to it.

As they trotted off, I looked for my fellow Greeks, finding them standing in a circle, talking with Thalia.

"Hey, guys. There's a war council about to start-"

"War Council WOOOO!" Yelled a Centaur passing by. "Where's that at?"

"Who leads you?" I asked, looking at the most probably drunk Centaur.

"Fuck if I know." He slurred, before trotting off.

I shook my head, before continuing to tell my friends to follow me.

Together we exited the Mass of Amazons and made our way to the Romans. Viscount stood there, surrounded by more than fifty people, and still more were joining him.

We were the last to arrive, and instantly Viscount started.

"Welcome, Leaders of the people that have gathered here. First and foremost, I'd like to say a thank you. A thank you to my Centurions and Legionnaires for fighting against these odds, and to the Amazons, Greeks and Hunters of Artemis, for rushing to our aid."

He glanced at Julius, and for the first time, he seemed to notice just how many people were left of the First Century.

"This is what's left?" He asked.

Julius nodded sadly.

"I'm sorry," Viscount said, his eyes drooping even lower. Clearing his throat, he then continued.

"The Romans, those that fought this side, have taken heavy losses. So far, we haven't been able to count them up, but we know for sure that we lost Centurions Ratimir, Violet and Gina, along with Centurion Sabinus of my Praetorian Guard. Centurions Mary and Dion were gravely wounded in the battle. There are more we know of, but to preserve the short amount of time we have, I would rather not talk about them."

I stiffened at the name of Mary. I had noticed that she was gone, but I thought she was just elsewhere. Gravely wounded though, that was so much worse.

"The Amazons, we've taken fewer losses, though that black creature had definitely taken a toll on us. My Main Bodyguard, Beatrice lost her life, along with three Warehouse Commanders. Commander Meghan, Tampa Warehouse, Commander Frida, of the Washington Warehouse, and Commander Mariah of the Charlotte Warehouse. We too, have yet to count up other losses so far."

"Who else wishes to report?"

Nobody said anything. The Hunters had stayed way behind lines, away from any place that would get them in front of harm's way.

"Alright, well then let's discuss what we're doing next."

"We're going towards Camp Half-Blood."

"That we are. What news do you have of them?"

"They're holding out against another Persian Army. Last I heard, they are pretty well prepared."

"We'll count up our losses, give them a ceremonial burial, and head straight for Camp Half-Blood."

"What about the Persians?"

"Collect the weapons and armor that can still be used. Everything else, including the bodies, go over the bridge."

"Also, Praetor-" Julius started.

"Yes?"

"We have someone who has joined our side. She is currently being treated, but she sends her apologies."

"Who is she?"

"Valentina Tipani."

Viscount's eyes widened.

"Now, please before you speak, let me tell you this. She originally came with this black beast, but upon seeing me, hesitated. The Beast nearly killed her, but she still helped in defeating it."

"She killed Gloria, more than a dozen Romans, and very nearly did the same to me and Daniel. Why would I invite her back to the army?"

"I doubt she'll go back to the Augur after what happened. If all else, it's good to have someone who has an insight into what that Traitor plans."

Silence.

After many minutes passed in said awkward silence, Viscount finally spoke up. "She can stay, but be aware. Any sign that she will betray us, I will instantly execute her. She is powerful, and letting her into the camp is dangerous. But I do trust your judgment, Julius."

"Thank you, Praetor." He muttered.

 _ **Bruce**_

The Sun had only just recently risen, but it seemed that the Persians were already marching towards us. I could feel them march, cause the ground was shaking.

We did have the element of surprise in our hands though. I really doubted they knew about the Amazons.

Walking up the steps leading to the top of the wall, I met George.

"Sir-"

"I know. They're coming."

He nodded, before turning around and running back up the Steps.

Commander Gwendolyn stood on the walls, looking at the Thousands of Persian Soldiers arriving through the streets.

Rolling down the main street, being towed by two dozen horses, was the Massive Ballista which had been firing at us during the defense of the last position.

Man, was I not happy to see that.

Surrounding the Ballista were soldiers that seemed more elite than anything I had seen on the battlefield. Wearing Golden Armor, they gleamed in the rising sun.

"My guess is those are the Famed Immortals of Persia," Liz said beside me.

"That isn't good. They're going to cause us trouble. ARCHERS GET READY!" I ordered.

Amazon and Greek Bows creaked as they were quickly strung.

But the enemy stopped far from what we could have reached with arrows.

The Large Ballista was slowly getting wound up.

My eyes widened.

"EVERYONE OFF THE FUCKING WALL!" I yelled.

Those closer to the steps ran down them, while those further away simply jumped off of the wall.

Thirty seconds went by without anything happening.

Then an ear-splitting crack startled everyone crouching on the floor. Not a few moments later, the top part of the wall flew off, sending sandbags and wooden palisade bits everywhere.

"Nobody goes back!" I told those around me. The order was quickly sent around. By the looks of it, nobody really wanted to go anyway. The Walls were no longer safe.]

The second bolt struck the gate. Both Doors flew off of their hinge, crushing one of the tents. Thankfully no one had been behind it.

A battle cry went up from the Persians, and I saw through the now-open gate that they were charging.

"TO THE GATE!"

Amazons and Greeks rushed towards the hole in our defense, just about forming a good Phalanx before the Persians crashed against them. The Front line of the enemy got skewered, but that was nothing compared to what the enemy still had.

In the next few seconds, the Line stabilized, though it was curving inwards, towards the tents.

Archers were climbing steps and firing from the high ground into the mass of Persians.

Then the Grapples appeared on top of the walls.

First one, then half a dozen, and then tens.

Gathering together those that weren't taking part in the defense of the Gate, I charged up the stairs, cutting down those that had already set foot on the wall.

Roger from the Hermes Cabin took an arrow in the neck and went over the far side of the wall.

That only made me fight even harder.

While the Gatehouse was still defended by a well-formed shield wall, the fight on the wall turned into a melee.

At one point I met Gwendolyn, who held two bloodied swords. One in each hand.

Then it was back to slashing.

The Crashing of the Ballista firing made me jerk my head towards the war machine. It's bolt sheared through the Persian Horde, killing hundreds in its path, before crashing into our shield wall. The Soldiers tried closing the gap, but the Persians broke through, and the entire courtyard behind me turned into a massive melee. One Greek against Ten Persians and more were still flooding in through the gate.

"BACK TO THE TENTS!" I roared, jumping from the wall, stabbing down at a Persian that got underneath me.

I cut a path through the mass of enemies, trying to unite individual fighters into groups.

A new line was now forming, between the tents. That's where I was leading my growing band of Demigods and Amazons.

We passed the first tent, and not two seconds later, it caught fire. In a cloud of deadly flames, it spread over the Persians. Screams of pain went up into the air, and the smell of charred flesh filled it.

Once we joined with the line of defense, I went behind them, where I met with Tatiana. Her arm was bandaged.

"Good job," I called over.

She nodded.

A Pegasus landed beside me.

"Hector!" I said, seeing the buff Child of Iris sitting atop it.

"I come from the wall. We're nearly finished with it. You may retreat whenever you need to."

"We can't while we're fighting them!"

"Alright. I'm not staying though. If it helps, I noticed Golden Tinted warriors marching from that Giant Ballista. Not all, but some."

"Damn it. Okay, thank you."

He patted the side of the Pegasus, and it was gone. Speeding through the air, back where it had come from.

Turning back towards the fighting, I saw a lull in Persians crashing against the new line of defense. The Flames of the First Tent had disrupted them a lot.

But through the flames, came the golden glint of the famed warriors. The Immortals. They were charging straight towards us.

"HOLD THE LINE!"

However, instead of crashing against our shields, they simply vaulted over them, landing behind.

Panic was tangible in the air.

"FOR OLYMPUS!" I cried and charged at the nearest one.

He noticed me and jumped away from my swing. Duncan, my cabin-mate stabbed at him, but it got deflected by his shield.

No matter what either of us did, it was dodged or deflected.

But nothing got through our defense either. This was a stalemate. Right until a spear burst from his chest, and George held a thumbs up from behind the Persian Soldier.

I noticed my Sister, singlehandedly fighting against one of these warriors. Her deep red hair was swinging wildly as she struck with vigor against the solid defense of the Immortal.

She was tiring, there was no doubt about it. So I rushed towards her.

Reaching her just as one of the Golden Warrior's strikes got through her defense, I deflected the blow.

Fighting together, the Immortal stood no chance. He slipped up while I struck, and the strike skittered into his shoulder. Before he could react to what had happened, Liz's blade had bitten into his neck.

We looked at each other, smiling.

Time passed as if everything was in slow motion.

An arrow was flying through the air, hitting her in the chest. Piercing armor and flesh.

Whipping my head towards where it had come from, an Immortal stood, holding a bow.

Without even hesitating, I threw my sword at him, and it struck him where he had hit Liz.

Liz was collapsing, and I ran to catch her before her head hit the floor.

"Liz... Liz- No."

"Bruce. Don't worry about-"

She coughed, blood leaking from her mouth.

"I'll get a healer here, just-"

"Both you and I know this is something even godly medicine won't be able... able to heal."

Tears flowed down my cheeks.

"Liz. Please, don't leave me. Sis..."

She smiled, cradling my cheek.

"Fight for me."

Then her body went limp.

A scream of pure hatred erupted from my mouth. Something I hadn't done ever since... ever since we had lost our mother.

Grabbing her sword and shield, I looked at the now gathering force of Persians, ready to attack us again.

"NO. MORE!" I roared.

An Immortal charged at me. His head was flying through the air, and I hadn't even done so much as flinch.

Tears were flowing from my eyes. Recalling her voice. Our History together.

My vision went red.

Running forward, I cut through two Immortals like they were nothing.

"TONIGHT, THE PERSIANS WILL LEARN TO FEAR US AGAIN!" I yelled at the top of my lungs.

Those that were defending until now found a new strength course through their veins. The Few immortals still fighting against us were killed. They then cheered with me and followed me in the charge.

"DIE!" I cried.

Slaughter followed in my path.

"PERSIAN SCUM!" A man was slowly appearing beside me, solidifying from the cloud of blood.

It was Ares.

Tears of fire were trailing down his face.

Only a curt nod was exchanged between us, then we went back to doing what we could do best.

Kill.

In the matter of a few minutes, we were charging from the Gate. Towards the Ballista.

The Ballista cracked again, and a bolt was whistling towards us.

I threw my shield into the air. With a smack, the Bolt deflected off of it and landed harmlessly far away. The Shield fell to the ground, cracked in two.

A second shot never came, for we collided with the Immortals surrounding the Ballista, and they crumpled like can's of soda under one's foot.

My Father gave a cry of glee. Two thin boys had also appeared beside my father, they too crying. Phobos and Deimos.

Liz had been a Child of Ares that was beloved by even our Immortal Step-Siblings.

Something was happening in the Ranks of the Immortals. Something that had never happened yet in the History of their existence.

They screamed in terror and ran.

Once they had retreated, complete silence took over the field of battle.

I looked at my Father and two Step-Brothers.

"Let your Sister Rest in Peace," Ares said.

I bowed my head, and when I looked up, they were gone.

"Bruce?"

It was George.

"Yes?"

"What should we do now? We won't be safe for long. Another attack is sure to come."

"The Wall is done. We're retreating there. But we're not giving this back to the Enemy. We're taking it with us." I pointed at the Ballista. "Call the Camp. Ask for more Vehicles. We're taking all the equipment we can. And you, Tatiana-"

"What about me?"

"Rig the Rest of the tents to explode when a tripwire triggers it. But only once we're no longer moving between them."

"Alright."

"And Gather our dead. We're not giving the Persians the Satisfaction of getting any more Greek Bodies to burn."

Everyone nodded and headed off.

I still stood there though. Watching. Watching the Elite of Persia Running before us.

This was the last time they'd ever run.

"And that, I swear to you, Father," I muttered under my Breath.

With every death, the Persians would pay back a hundred-fold.

 **"I swear..."**


	19. Holding the Wall

_**Sophia**_

We had been driving down the interstate, towards New York, for the past three hours. Now, we were in the City Center, traveling without much problem. That was strange.

No bumper-to-bumper traffic, in fact, hardly any cars.

With Tartarus rising and whatnot, it was this that took me aback the most.

The others were also surprised by the lack of vehicles on the streets.

"What happened to this place while we were gone?" John asked.

"That did," Apollo grunted, pointing at a bright shimmering light in the sky. It was emanating from the Empire State Building.

No. It was coming from above it.

"The Fuck?" Julius asked, also looking at the lights. "My guess is, that isn't normal."

"It isn't," Robert muttered.

"Apollo, you're the one that should know this. What's going on there.? I said, looking at the ragged God.

"My guess is Hecate. She's spreading magic through the city, though I don't know what use it'll be."

 _"Sophia. You seeing this?"_ Ostia asked from the Radio.

"Yes, don't worry about it. Apollo says it's nothing important."

"Well, I didn't-" I shot him a look. The last thing we needed was for everyone to be distracted before the battle with the Persians.

 _"Alright then. If he says so. Now, onto other info. I've contacted the Army marching from the North. We're going to join forces soon, and together we're marching for the Persians, catching them from behind. Could you call up your friends? See what the situation is over there?"_

"Sure."

As the radio turned off, I turned towards Julius.

"You have a Phone?"

"Why do you need it?" He asked, his eyes narrowing.

"I can't exactly call them with an Iris Message from the SUV, now can I?"

He sighed, before handing me his phone.

"If a monster kills me cause of this, I'll blame you."

I just smiled, before dialing in Bruce's Number. Most of the Counsellors had phones, and it had been a good idea to memorize their numbers.

After two rings, someone picked it up.

"Who the fuck are you?" Came the voice of Bruce. It was different from what I was used to though. Intermingled with the deep and gruff sound was something that made me feel worried. It was grief.

"It's me, Sophia."

"Oh. Sophia. It's good to hear your voice again."

"We're currently in New York. Another two hours and we're there in Montauk. What's happening over there?"

"We've retreated all the way to Lake Montauk, where we have good defenses set up. We've lost-"

He stopped.

"How many have died?"

Silence for a few moments, before he answered. "Four Dozen, maybe five."

Someone close to him had died. I could hear that in his tone. Already, my brain was thinking of who that could have been.

"And how many people are left to defend?"

"We have around Four Hundred Greeks that are currently at the wall, as well as two hundred Romans who have taken up weapons to help us. And then there's the Amazons. They can fight, that's for sure. If they attack, I doubt we'll have too much of a problem with defending this place."

"Listen, Bruce. I can hear your voice. Something's happened. If you want we can-"

"Not now, Sophia. Maybe later." He cut in.

Then the call ended.

I looked at the Phone for a moment, before handing it back to Julius.

"What did he say?" Desdemona asked.

"They're doing fairly well. Few losses, though each loss is wearing them down by a lot. Bruce said holding the line won't be a problem from now on."

"Well let's hope he's right," Robert muttered.

If all went well, then we would meet with the Roman citizens as we arrived near Long island. That would boost our ranks with a further Five Hundred Romans, those that had left the legion to accompany the Civilians.

Attacking the enemy from two directions would result in them getting destroyed within minutes.

 _ **Bruce**_

I sighed as I ended the call, knowing fully well that I would have to talk to somebody. In the heat of the battle, losing a friend, a fellow Demigod left a hole in you, that would later cause you pain, knowing it could have been you, and that the person that died wasn't going to return from the Underworld as the same person.

But losing a sibling, someone who had literally grown up with me, and had fought beside me through everything and anything, was something far worse. She had died in my arms, and I couldn't do anything about it.

For the sake of the Gods, I was a warrior. I had seen hundreds die. Brothers and Sisters-in-arms dying beside me, and me felling hundreds of enemies. Yet this one death was making me numb.

Why couldn't the pain just end?

WHY?

I had seen my father shed tears for her loss, something not many living people could say about themselves.

Grabbing the dagger I had stabbed into the Camping Table, I walked outside.

The Great Ballista we had plundered from the Persians had been set up on a massive podium attached to the wall. The Hephaestus kids had made it into a turret, allowing it to rotate, making it useable by a single Person, giving it armor, and capabilities to reload itself.

I was surprised how quickly they had finished all of these upgrades.

"George, what's the situation now?" I called up to him.

"They're still standing there. Cavalry is marching up and down their ranks of soldiers. I can't see any more of these bad boys though." He mentioned, pointing at the ballista.

Good. That would cause one less problem.

"Those Immortals. Can you see them?"

"No. They probably hardly have anyone left after you attacked them. It'd be like finding a needle in a haystack."

"Once they get word that an army is moving to flank them, they won't hesitate to attack."

 _ **Commander Morteza**_

"So you say that there's an army approaching from New York?" I asked the Scout.

"Yes, Commander."

My blood started to boil.

"Dismissed," I muttered, and the scout scurried out.

As soon as he was gone, I smashed my hand against the table inside my tent, roaring with anger.

Commander Dariush was an overconfident Idiot.

I have no idea how, but the army that was sent to kill the Romans had failed in the one job they had. Seventy-Five thousand Soldiers. Seventy-Five Thousand against Three Thousand.

And yet the fool manages to fuck that up.

"Captain Rasheed!"

"Yes, sir?"

"You will be in charge of half the army. Take Fifteen Thousand soldiers towards Montauk. Stop that army. Do not let them through."

"At once, Sir!"

He jogged out of the tent, and already, I could hear his parade-ground voice ordering around soldiers and other Captains.

I walked outside too and looked at the nearest officer.

"You. We're marching on that wall. Right now."

"Right away, sir."

The horns blew, and the army split in two, one of the halves returning to Montauk, just as I had ordered.

As I dressed up in my armor, the Remaining Two Dozen Immortals marched after me.

That One demigod had wreaked havoc upon my Immortals. The King had given me One-Hundred to start off. One of the soldiers who had a massive wound on his chest had muttered about how Gods fought on their side before he died.

"MEN! CHARGE!" I yelled, and Thousands of soldiers picked up a battle cry as they ran for the walls. Half a dozen battering rams were being carried by the soldiers up the slight slope.

Then the first bolt crashed through our ranks, tearing apart at least fifty soldiers.

The bastards had taken the King's Will Ballista for themselves. Anger burned in me.

 _ **Bruce**_

"Half the enemy is going back towards Montauk. They know reinforcements are coming." I said to George.

"We have bigger problems right now!" He yelled, looking at the Persian horde charging up the slope towards our wall.

"TATIANA NOW!" I roared.

A collective beep went up from the field before us, and hundreds of red dots appeared.

The Persians were too slow to figure out what this was until it was too late for them to decide to retreat. High explosives ripped through dirt and flesh, taking out Thousands of them. Their Battlecry turned into screams of terror, but I only heard it once the ringing in my ears subsided.

"ARCHERS FIRE!" I ordered, and Bows creaked.

The Persians still charging over the upturned dirt were downed by arrows. Hardly any missed, and row after row of Persians fell down dead.

"GREEK FIRE!"

Bottles of Greenish Liquid Flew through the air, smashing against the ground, instantly lighting on fire. Nothing was able to get through it.

A Man in Golden Armor was Screaming abuse at his soldiers in what seemed to be Spanish.

Harvey from the Hephaestus cabin translated for me.

"He's telling his Soldiers to continue the attack. Calling them a bunch of unflattering things."

"Thank you," I smirked.

I walked off the wall and dialed the number Sophia had called me on. That had been an hour ago now.

" _Yes?"_

"It's me, Bruce. The Persians have moved out. Half their army has attacked our walls, but holding them back isn't causing problems. The Other Half of the army is marching into Montauk. Be Prepared for a fight there."

" _Okay. What can we expect from them?"_

"One or Two Thousand Cavalry and Twelve Thousand Infantry."

" _I'll pass it on to the Others, thank you."_

"Where are you now?"

" _We haven't passed anything remarkable, so I don't know where we are exactly. We'll be there in an hour and a half, though maybe sooner cause there's no traffic."_

"Alright. Until then we'll-"

Something crashed against the gate, and a crack appeared on beam keeping it closed.

"What the-" A second crash made even more cracks appear.

I ended the call and drew my sword.

"Bruce! Battering Ram!" George yelled.

Thanks. It was a bit late now.

The Third Crash was delayed, but still, the gates swung open as the battering ram connected with it.

Persians came running through in groups of three and four. It wasn't exactly the horde that I was expecting, but their number was quickly going.

I charged into the thick of it, cutting at anything that moved, slicing through woven shields and limbs.

More and more friends were joining the fight, leaving the walls, and very soon the fighting was pushed back to the gate. Any Persian that charged at the Shield Wall we had formed didn't live for long after. The Growing pile of bodies didn't exactly help them.

Grapple hooks flew through the air, catching on shields, and taking apart our Phalanx.

It descended into a melee, however with every Persian you killed, it seemed like two more took its place.

We wouldn't hold out for long like this.

 _ **King Shradeth**_

The Romans were gone. Scouts had spoken about the Roman Legion moving away, but it was now certain that they had taken everything of value.

My Soldiers were building a fortress where once the Roman Fort had been. All that remained of it was a charred husk and a few stone buildings.

So far there was no news of the armies I had sent to kill the Legion. All that was certain was they had destroyed a unit of Vanguard I had sent after them. I wasn't doubting Dariush's Competence.

"Commander Tarik. Please come here." I told the man.

"My king?"

"We have plans to discuss."

"Of course, my king. I am yours to command."

I liked Tarik. Loyal to the core.

"There is a mountain not far from here. Mount Tamalpais. I have gotten word that Atlas, a deity of the greeks, resides there. You must talk to him. Make him join our cause. We'll need him."

"Doesn't he hold up the sky? He won't be able to help much like that."

"True enough, however one of my allies has that covered. Once the time comes, he will no longer have to hold the sky, and then he will help us immensely."

"Very well my King. How many soldiers should I take?"

"Ten Thousand."

The Commander's eyes widened, but he said nothing, only bowed, before walking away to gather men.

I looked at the city of Rome. Such a beautiful city, though it was fairly small.

In the distance a black spot appeared, slowly getting closer. It was the beast I had gotten from Tartarus.

The Dot was sluggish and swaying in the air.

After many minutes, the black spot landed in front of me. The Beast stumbled to its knees. Black smoke was pouring from dozens of cuts, both deep and small.

"What the fuck happened to you?" I asked.

"You gave me a traitor." It seethed, anger glowing in its eyes.

"What..."

"That Girl. She betrayed me."

"She alone couldn't have done this to you."

"I was accompanying your army that was marching against the Romans. Your armies fight like fodder. For each Roman, you lost ten soldiers."

"Get to what happened."

"Their allies arrived. First, these women warriors riding weird chariots arrived-"

I only just held myself back from yelling in fury at the sky. The Amazons had a knack for fucking up my plans.

"-and though I caused chaos within their ranks, your whore met the enemy, and struck a chord with them. We still seemed to be in a winning position, but there was a second army of reinforcements arriving into battle, one I didn't foresee. Half-Horse, Half-Human drunks."

"Centaurs."

"Those are the ones." It growled.

"And what of the army?"

"What do you think? Destroyed. All three of your idiot commanders are dead."

Once again, I stopped myself from yelling at the beast. No matter how weak it looked, I was sure it could kill me in the blink of an eye if I angered it.

"How long do you need before you are back to strength?"

"A few days. Then I'm returning to Tartarus. I'll be back for that Valentina though. Her betrayal must be avenged."

"Very well, do what you must. Now go." I sighed, and the creature stumbled off.

 _ **Bruce**_

With a roar, I stabbed into the stomach of the Persian Soldier in front of me, and with a whimper, he went down.

The Persian horde had once again been reduced to a trickle as new bottles of greek fire, and some special grenades made by the Hephaestus cabin flew into the disorganized ranks of the enemy.

Those enemies that had broken in had been quickly dispatched, and the broken gate was now being barricaded with whatever we had. Before closing up the opening, we did decide to bring in the battering ram. One less thing they could use against us.

They probably had more than one.

With Three Dozen Soldiers at the gates, pushing against the barricade to counterbalance the Persians, and another Four Hundred on the walls raining hell down onto the Persians, we were putting up one hell of a fight.

No significant arrow volleys came from the Persians, which was strange. Seemed like most of the soldiers carrying bows had marched off with the other half, and those that had remained were getting decimated by their repurposed ballista and hundreds of arrows from Amazons and Demigods alike.

Horns were blown across the battlefield and the Persians instantly started retreating. Walking up onto the walls, I saw the masses running for their lives. The Hill we had built upon was scattered with bodies, some charred to the crisp, most with arrows sticking out from them.

The Few houses that hadn't been cleared in front of the wall had also been burned down.

Thousands of Persians had died.

We weren't Victorious yet. Sophia still had her battle to fight, and somehow I felt that that would be harder to do.

Once more, I prayed for the Gods to help us, for whatever good it did.

There was no cheering from our walls. Those that had died were being carried off. More than I would have wanted to see.

George was one of those bodies. An arrow had hit him while he was fighting on the walls. By pure chance, it had hit him in the neck. He hadn't survived.

The Persians would pay for every life lost.

 **Even if I were to Perish while I was fulfilling that promise.**


End file.
